Dark Souls
by Bellatrix Black
Summary: Hermione unknowingly unlocks one of the Malfoy family secrets: a vampire named Luis, from over a century of slumber. But what does he want from her? And what does he have in store for the family who locked him away? UPDATED! Ch.11 now up! (Eventual D-Hr)
1. Chapter One: The Awakening

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Disclaimer: No, I do NOT own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling and Warner Bros and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. 

A/N – Ok, first of all the plot for this fic is loosely based and inspired by a book I read called Midnight Hunger, where this screen writer finds the journals of a vampire in the attic of what used to be his house. She turns them into a movie and he finds out and blah blah blah, it's a long story. Enjoyable nonetheless, I'd appreciate whatever criticism or comments people have for me so please **review me** when you're done reading. Thanks

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Dark Souls  
By Bellatrix Black

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Chapter One: The Awakening

"Miss Granger, have you found the book you were looking for?" came the voice of Hogwarts librarian, Madame Pince. It was the sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and once again, her favorite student had taken to the library, hungry for knowledge.

"It doesn't appear to be in here, do you mind if I check the other books in storage?" Hermione called, pulling herself away from the large bookshelf and turning to older woman. 

"Not at all" Madame Pince answered quickly as she hurried over to quiet down some first years who were arguing in one of the corners. Hermione quickly made her way into the storage room behind Madame Pince's office. It was dark and musty and had obviously not been getting any attention from the house elves. This room was for the extra copies and incorrect books Madame Pince had been holding up. Hermione had only paid a few visits to the room before, though she could not exactly say she had enjoyed them.

Humming a soft tune under her breath, her eyes ran up the books shelved, looking for a biography on Veela. Professor Lupin had returned as their Defense Against Dark Arts teacher that year and he had asked them to all write an essay on any half human, half demon subject. Thus Hermione had chosen veela, thinking that it would be by far one of the most interesting possibilities.

"_Werewolves… centaurs…_" she muttered to herself until her eyes rested upon a large purple book.

"Aha, Veela" she said smartly and she attempted to un-wedge the book, causing many more to come toppling to the ground. She grumbled as she grudgingly picked them all up and placed them on the shelf. The last book however, caught her eye. Scrolled across the top right hand corner of the book in small scarlet letters, read the words _Luis Malfoy_.

"Malfoy? Hermione said to herself. She reached up as to place the book back onto the shelf, before she stopped herself. Without even thinking, she silently slipped it into her bag and hurried out of the storage room.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

"Hermione, you really need to lay off the books" Ron exclaimed that night in the common room as he and Harry sat down for a game of chess. 

"I'm doing my homework, which is something I noticed even you yourself have not gotten around to" she muttered as she scribbled across her parchment. 

"Leave her Ron, if she doesn't get it done now, she'll be fretting over it tomorrow at breakfast and there'll be no end to it until she finally does" Harry piped up before he ordered his pawn across the chess board. Ron shrugged and turned his full attention to the chess board. Half an hour passed by and Hermione continued on with her homework in silence, glancing up only once or twice, annoyed when Harry's knight began beating up a screeching pawn and so on. Finally, the last straw came when Ron checkmated Harry's king, which caused him to break out in a fit of glee.

"That's the fifth game this week I've won!" he proclaimed loudly.

"Oh for goodness sake," Hermione huffed as she crammed her parchment into her bag, "can't I even study in peace?"

She shot Ron a frustrated look and he grimaced as she made her way up the steps to her dorm.

"Was it something I said?" he asked Harry, confused.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Throwing her bag down onto her bed, Hermione sighed. Today had been a long day. Apart from the double potions and the forgetful Professor Binns in History of Magic, she had gotten hardly anything useful from that Veela biography she had spent two hours searching the library for. Persistence was nothing if there was no gain and now she found herself exhausted and annoyed.

Parvati was sitting on the end of Lavender's bed, reading through a Wizarding magazine and giggling occasionally as they spoke. Hermione ignored them and tugged the hangings around her bed closed. She quickly changed into a tank top and her pajama bottoms and slipped into bed. Laying there, she waited for her eyes to become heavy and eventually sleep but alas it did not happen. Running a hand through her thick brown hair in frustration, she cursed herself and reached over to her school bag pulling out two books from within. 

One was a muggle story she had been reading and the other… it was the small black book from the library. She ran her fingers over the engraved writing on the book's cover and saw it glimmer slightly. Hearing the faint clicks of her room mates bed lamps, signaling that they both were going to sleep, curiosity got the better of the young witch. She tugged at the clasp which binded the book closed.

"Ouch!" Hermione hissed as she quickly pulled back her finger. In her lamplight she could see the blood slowly dripping from her finger onto the small black book. She wrapped her finger in her handkerchief and turned back to the book. It's clasp no longer closed and the engraved name now shone an even brighter contrast of scarlet.

Pulling open the cover, she studied it carefully and turned to the first page.

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A journal of thoughts one might call this, as that is what I propose this journal to be for. Thoughts of the past, the present, perhaps even the future. One can only imagine the possibilities their future can hold. A future of endless exploitation's. Endless to say the least. 

To whoever there may be who shall come to read this diary, I ask you, the reader to be impartial to what you read. To be patient, as this is not some mere story I lay down for you. It is, as some may call, a biography of sorts. Many could probably not begin to imagine the world I shall describe. Muggles. What could they ever know except what they are told. But a wizard or witch, your mind shall know the simplicity of what I shall speak and your mind alone can only judge me accordingly. 

This book is not one of my life's work, as so many of my forefather's have gone ahead and produced. It is a tale of when my life began. My true life. The night my very soul was taken from me and the consequence of this action that robbed me of my humanity. 

I speak of the night that I, Luis Malfoy became one of the undead, a creature of the night. A vampire. 

Hermione looked up from her book, feeling like she had been caught doing something that she wasn't meant to be doing. But Parvati was snoring loudly in the bed next to hers and she could hear Lavender talking softly in her sleep. Sheepishly, she lowered her gaze back to the yellowing paper and turned the page.

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I was but a young lad in London. My wealth and my prominent family name had opened countless doors for my future and while I had chosen none, I was weary and full of grievances. I had graduated from Hogwarts but half a decade ago and was being urged by my father to enter the Ministry. The year was 1692 and I was still living off my father's money. I did not care, I spent my days in pubs, allowing myself to get drunk and take home a new lass every night. The world was a darker place then. Modesty held no grounds except with the noble families and I was far from representing them. 

Perhaps if I had held limits to myself, if I had not attempted to rebel against my father's wishes so often, then I would never have become what I am today. Afraid of sunlight, silver and crosses. I could sit here and recount my misdeeds, though I know it would do me no aid and only fill my being with even more woe. And what good will I do myself dwelling? The night I was turned, I had been wandering the meadows of the Parkinson land. Their daughter had been one of which I had attempted to bring under my strong hold, but she resisted me to the best of her ability. 

Never the less, I had bedded the girl and moved on. Tonight I had arranged to meet with an old friend of mine. My father held strict disapproval for him and he therefore had bewitched the grounds of Malfoy Manor from not allowing his feet to so much as enter. I waited impatiently. It was a cold night, the autumn air was crisp and the sky pin pointed with stars. I had waited impatiently for over an hour before I had heard it. It was nearing midnight. The soft growl that carried across the wind disheveled my demeanor and fear swelled up inside of me. I turned to leave, hoping that the Parkinson's did not keep any dangerous beasts on their property. My quick stride turned into a run and I found myself part of what I would soon find to be called the hunt. 

I ran until I came to the small village on the side of the Parkinson Estate. Breathing deeply, I stopped to catch my breath behind the Inn. That's when they appeared four of them. Four of the undead. Startled, I turned as if to run to the Inn door, hoping that if I could just get to sanctuary that I would be safe. They were once again in front of me in the blink of an eye. 

"Do not be afraid Luis," said the female, her pale face showing no emotion at all, "It will only hurt for a minute." 

Once again, I made to run but this time I felt her icy hands on my shoulders. She spun me around before lowering her mouth onto my warm neck, piercing my skin with her sharp fangs and I felt my warm blood begin to run down my arms. My body soon turned cold, like hers only mine was an inch from death. All I could remember after this was voices, ones I would soon become familiar with. The woman's male counter parts and herself were arguing. Later it became known to me that they had not wanted her to turn me. She was always a strong one, my Alexandra.

Piercing her wrist with her own fangs, she held it to my mouth.

"Drink" she ordered and in my dazed and disheveled mind, I somehow knew what to do. Placing my lips over the wound on her hand, I drank until my body gave out.

Hermione store at the small black book feeling a mixture of surprise and sorrow filling her. This man, this "Luis". The fear inside him had been so real, so dark, so … indescribable and yet he had still been able to present it to her now. Over 400 years later and the fear had not lessened to even the reader. Hermione glanced at the clock on her bedside table. It was almost midnight. She felt sleep coming to her eyes and she placed the book under her pillow, turned off her lamp and fell to sleep.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Many miles away, in a crypt hidden from both the magical and muggle worlds alike, something stirred. It pulled itself out of its bindings, which had now become weak and limp, raised the heavy cement lid that lay above it. Heaving itself out and standing tall, it pulled back the thick silver hair from its eyes and let out a soft growl.

It had awoken once more.

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~ENDCHAPTER1~ 

Authors Note: Ok, this is chapter one and I think it turned out okay by all standards. I actually had the idea brewing in my mind for ages but I never got around to writing it until now. Initially I was going to make it that Hermione was out of school and yeah, a lot of different changes but I decided to stick with this. 

Luis was originally going to be Lucas, but I've used that name in the future chapters of my other fic "Heirs: Aurora Snape" and didn't want anyone to get confused by it. If you've got time, then do me a huge favor, check it out and let me know what you think. 

Also, **please** review and give me your honest opinion of this chapter, as it will help motivate me to write and also tell me just what I'm doing wrong. I know this chapter wasn't necessarily long and didn't have much of the actual Hogwarts trio, but I just needed to get the beginning of Luis's story out there. Besides, I thought it rather interesting. All questions and comments are welcome. Chapter two will be coming as soon as I get around to writing it, which is hopefully soon though I will be disappearing to Sydney for a few days in the meantime.

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Bellatrix Black


	2. Chapter Two: Discoveries Of The Mind

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything remotely related to him. He belongs to JK rowling and Warner Bros. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended. I am simply borrowing the characters to play out my own little warped fantasies.

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Dark Souls

By Bellatrix Black

Chapter Two: Discoveries of the Mind

Hermione awoke the next morning to the loud chatter of Parvati and Lavender. They each bid her good morning as they prepared themselves to go downstairs for breakfast. Hermione changed quickly and took a quick glance under her pillow. The journal was still there. She had had a dreamless sleep the previous night and for some odd reason, she felt it was because of this small black book that lay infront of her. It was silly, she knew, to be blaming such a trivial thing on a book, but then again hadn't Tom Riddle's diary been well… evil? 

No, she assured herself. It had just been herself. She had been so burnt out the previous night that it was no wonder. She put the book back under her pillow, grabbed her bag and headed down to breakfast. 

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"Pass the toast please" Ron asked as he began scoffing down whatever food was in sight. Hermione handed him the toast basket and looked up as the morning owls flew in. A large brown barn owl flew above their table, dropping Hermione's order of the Daily Prophet right in front of her nose. The owl then set itself down on the table and she paid it before it took flight again. 

"Anything interesting happen in the news today?" Harry casually as Hermione unravelled the newspaper and spread it out in front of her.

"Deatheaters were spotted just north of York, but other than that, nothing odd" she muttered as she took a spoonful of cornflakes. A worrying expression passed over Harry's face but he said nothing.

"They were just spotted is all Harry, at least nothing major has happened since the dementors abandoned Azkaban" she pointed out. 

"I know" he said, "but they're being spotted more frequently now. Something's definitely not right".

"Well I'm sure Dumbledore and Fudge would have realised it as well"

Harry simply nodded and returned to his bacon and eggs. Hermione shook her head. She didn't know what she could do to stop Harry from being so worried. It wasn't that there wasn't cause for alarm, on the contrary if anything it would probably be better if people were a bit more cautious whenever it came to even an appearance of deatheaters. But he was the only one right now who seemed to think that something big was coming soon and Hermione couldn't help but wonder if it were true. 

She cast a glance over at Malfoy, a smug look on his face. His father had escaped from Azkaban when the dementors had left their posts. Ever since then he had returned to his usual higher-than-thou demeanour. Hermione couldn't help but wonder if the Malfoy in the journal was infact a relation to him. Was it too much of a coincidence that his family had known the Parkinson's? 

Letting the thoughts run through her head, Hermione couldn't help but secretly wish she were back in her room, reading through the mind of Luis. She could only wish that the day passed by quickly.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Night soon came and the being left it's crypt. Looking up at the moonlight, he smiled to himself. He was hungry, so very hungry. Feeling the blood lust set in, he sniffed the air and smelt the taste of man. Heading in the direction, he walked for an hour before he came to a small cottage. There were people inside. He saw their shadows play across the windows and he smiled to himself. He walked over to the door and tapped it hard thrice. 

A young girl, no more than fifteen answered the door, looking up at the taller man. Her dark curls and chocolate skin filled him with an even deeper hunger and he struggled to restrain himself. 

"Madame, may I ask where the man of the house is?" he asked politely, shading his dusty clothes from view. 

"He's out hunting Sir," she said politely, "But he shall return soon. Would you like to come in and wait for him?" 

"Yes, as a matter of fact" he said softly as he took his first steps into the cottage, "I very much would". 

"I'm Clara and this is my mother Jessica," the girl issued to the elderly woman who was sitting in the living area, "And you would be?"

"My name is Luis" he said softly. _So much has changed…_ he noted to himself as he surveyed the cabin. Looking over at a calendar on the wall, he noted the date. October 12th 1997. His surprise soon turned to anger as he surveyed the two women. 

"How do you know my father?" Clara asked curiously as the stranger looked around. He smiled at her and she noticed something about his eyes. They seemed to hold her gaze while he walked over to face her. 

"I don't" he hissed and he drew her to him, sinking his fangs into the soft skin of her neck. She cried out in pain but he only pressed in harder, feeding off her fear. His senses were going wild and he felt the young body he held in his arms go limp. The older woman Jessica screamed and tried to pull Clara away from him, but he held on tighter, his fangs still within the young girl, his mouth filling with the warm intoxicating elixir of her life. Blood flowed down her front and he pulled her harder against him, wanting to squeeze the very last of her life out of her. To make his feed from her complete. He no longer felt her moving and after much hesitation, he let her body fall to the ground. He was not one to feed off the dead and he now went in search of Jessica.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Hermione flopped back down on her bed. She had finished her paper for Defence Against Dark Arts mere minutes ago after scouring through the storage section once again. She curled up with her blankets, sat up and reached under her pillow, retrieving the book and holding it in her lap. She skipped through a few of the pages until she came to where she had left off. 

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When I awoke, I found myself lying down inside an unfamiliar house. There she was, my Alexandra sitting by my bed side. She introduced herself, asked how I was feeling, making the regular small talk, which I became accustomed to overtime before she came to why I was there. She had turned me. She had made me a creature of the night. She had spared my worthless body, which she had killed anyway. 

"You will have to feed every night" she explained, "And stay indoors during the day. The sunlight is one of our biggest foes". 

From then on she took me on as her protege. The vampires with whom she had been with the night we had met were friends of hers. They hunted together, found their prey. They enjoyed the chase and soon so did I. The possibility of killing a human being seemed so ruthless, so barbaric. I told her I couldn't do it, but she hushed me. She told me that I would not have a choice. Either I did it or my body would go ahead and do it. I could not sustain myself without blood. 

I remember my first kill as I remember them all. Each one more special than the last. The hunt, the feed, the mere actions that took place were all special in their own way. I enjoyed feeding off muggles the most, the pretty whores who could be found on any street corner were always the most enjoyable. They knew nothing of what I was to do to them until I had already tasted their skin and fed off their bodies. I remained true to my Alexandra though and eventually we left London for Ireland.

Leaving behind the fellow vampires we knew, we set off for new kill, though not before I left a special present for my father. The young Parkinson girl had been a pleasure to entertain, to tease and to most of all feed off. Her heart was so wrapped with obsession that she did not even realise as I began sucking the life right out of her. I left her crumbled body on my father's doorstep. 

I'll forever remember the shrieks that erupted from that house when one of the maids found her body as they were closing the windows. I'll forever remember the message I left scratched across her breast, for it was one of my more witty and insightful play on words. For all that had been holy and human within me was lost for eternity now.

Forgive me father, for I have sinned.

Hermione was quiet as she closed the black book. It was no surprise that Luis had been a monster. She had read about vampires before, they weren't human at all once they were turned. Many went as far as to torture their victims and this was obviously no exception. The person who Luis had been as a human and the person he had been as a vampire were so uniquely different though. Placing the book on her bed side table, she switched off her lamp. After awhile, she became the prisoner of sleep and the night went on……

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Luis looked down at his kills. He had found Jessica hiding outside in the woods. He had merely enjoyed watching her run, feeling the wind in his hair as he chased after her before eventually allowing himself to speed up and capture her. He fed off her until there was not a drop left and waited until the father had come home. This one had been a little tougher, the stupid muggle had tried firing a gun at him. But vampires were extremely fast and agile and he was able to avoid the gun toting man until he was out of rounds. Gun's might not be able to kill him, but from memory the wounds pistols left hurt like hell. 

He had fed off the man, satisfying his need for blood and had then taken a spare change of clothes from his closet. Changing into a black pair of jeans, a navy satin shirt and a black leather jacket, he admired his choice of clothing, though he himself could not view them in a mirror. 

'Just one of the few down sides to being a vampire' he thought to himself. 

'Asleep for over one and a half centuries' he noted as he strode out of the cottage, making his way down the road. The scent in the air told him that there were more people about. He would need to find shelter from the sunlight come sunrise and he was sure he would find it in time. Sunrise was not another five hours away and he was not going to waste his first night awake waiting in some old cabin. He had plans. Much needed to be done before he had his vengeance. He needed to pay back those very people who had locked him away and take so much of his life. And what's more, he wanted to find the one who had given it back.

He closed his eyes as he walked, breathing in the air as the breeze blew strongly. 

"Who are you?" he asked, his concentration building until he finally had a flash of her. Trying again, he set his mind upon that of whom had opened his journal and unlocked him from his slumber. Again, another flash only this time he saw her more clearly. She was a young girl with thick brown hair. He stopped walking and concentrated on this image until finally he saw her completely. She was probably not more than seventeen, her hair framed her face as he noticed she was sleeping. Her white skin and pink lips illuminated in his vision of her. 

"Don't worry my angel," he whispered as he started walking again, "I'll make sure you get just what you deserve".

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~ENDCHAPTER2~

Author's Note: Finally, chapter two done faster than I thought it would be done actually. I'm writing this at 2:33am (just finished it) as I wanted it finished before I go to Sydney. Anyway, what did you think? Please **review me** and let me know as I would deeply appreciate it. Tell me what you like, hate and what you think should happen next, as I've not totally decided on it yet. Anyway, thanks to all my beloved reviewers (especially The Marauders, I didn't write the one with Hermione out of Hogwarts because it was too hard a plot to pull off at the time > __

Bellatrix Black


	3. Chapter Three: Uninvited Attention

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the people, locations, or animals depicted therewith. I only own the plot for this story and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. 

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Dark Souls

By Bellatrix Black

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Chapter 3: Uninvited Attention

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But it's only when I sleep, 

I see you in my dreams

Got me spinning around and round

Turning upside down

Only hear you breathe, somewhere in my dreams

Got me spinning around and round

Turning upside down, It's only when I sleep

- The Corrs "Only When I Sleep"

The following days passed quickly for Hermione, she either wrapped herself up in schoolwork or into Luis's journal. She became trapped within his tale, letting her mind only imagine the things he had seen and the things he had done. The monster inside of him had been so cruel, yet so refined. Ron and Harry seemed to notice a change in her demeanor, as she was prone to be snappish lately. They steered clear of her for the later parts of the evening but in the day things seemed OK. Hermione had taken to now carrying Luis's journal in her backpack. At first she had worried if she would lose it. But she didn't trust leaving it in her room after Lavender and Parvati had decided to go snooping through her trunk. It wasn't until Potions two weeks later that she began to worry that she had made the wrong choice. 

She had been standing outside Potions dungeon right after class. Looking for her quill she noticed the book wasn't in her bag.

"Oh shoot" she huffed as she turned to go back into the classroom.

"What Hermione?" Ron enquired, edgy about spending anymore time down in the dungeons. 

"Err… I forgot my potions book, go on without me, I'll catch up later" she murmured loudly as she hurried past Dean and Lavender who were the last of the students to leave. Professor Snape must have been in his office, she noted as she made her way over to her desk. She searched underneath her desk until she finally spotted the small black book, peeking out from under her chair. 

"Gotcha" Hermione said softly as she slipped her fingers around it and pulled it out in front of her. The crimson lettering on the cover seemed to shimmer at her touch and she reached to put the book back into her bag. Stopping, she closed her bag and put it down next to her. Taking her seat she opened the small black book and began to read where she had last left off. Luis had been in Ireland for well over a month and now he and Alexandra had decided on a new method of attracting prey.

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So we all sat there in out elegant nightclothes, smiling and laughing as the night passed away. Alexandra and her dark curls, her red lips' were shooting me hungry looks. She was getting impatient and we had already spent half of this evening entertaining our guests. I got up and locked the doors and windows, dimming down the candlelight's so that naught but ten were lit in the entire room. 

"I'm afraid we must call this an evening", I insisted loudly and they all got up from their places at the table. Heading towards the door, they waited for myself to appear with light to guide them. Instead a merely hid myself from their view, as did Alexandra. I could hear the worry in their voices as they conversed over what to do now. 

"Juliet" I called softly, making the daughter of the farmhand look up. 

"Juliet" I called again. She left the living room, in search of my voice and I soon cornered her in the kitchen. I fed off her there, in the moonlight from the window I saw the fear in her eyes, which only made me jerk her body harder until there was nothing. No breath. No life. Nothing. Letting her body drop to the ground, I heard a loud shriek from the living room. Alexandra had decided to show herself. My how I loved when she fed. Her very essence… her very nature… It was not just dangerous, it was powerful. I returned to her side and fed but not before-

Suddenly the book was jerked out of Hermione's hands. Looking up furiously, she found it to be none other than Draco Malfoy. By his side stood his two oafs, Crabbe and Goyle, both of which sneered as Draco clutched the book tightly.

"So what is it our little mudblood is reading today?" he asked questioningly as he eyed the book.

"None of your business Malfoy" she growled as she shot up and attempted to grab onto the book to no avail. He simply held it away from her grasp before turning around and circling some of the desks as he flipped lazily from page to page.

"Give it here, I don't have time for your buffoonery" she hissed at him but he continued to ignore her.

"_Ireland was never what I had imagined it would be. The people, the places, all of which soon became dull and lifeless before my eyes. Alexandra and myself became bored with the atmosphere and decided we should once again return to London. I always did enjoy the taste of people there personally_" Draco read out mockingly, "A love story Granger? Or one on geography?"

Crabbe and Goyle both smirked and chuckled to themselves as Hermione seethed.

"You have no idea what you're talking about Malfoy, now give it here"

Hermione outstretched her hand, her eyes blazing with anger and even of worry. This book was hers, if Draco found out it had belonged to a member of his extended family he might try to take it from her and for some unexplainable reason, she refused to let that happen. 

Draco scanned a few more pages with his eyes, pure delight shone on his face at the fact that he had managed to 'upset the mudblood'. He flipped the cover closed and glanced at the title. Running his fingers over the crimson words the smile soon disappeared from his face. 

Worried, Hermione quickly reached over and snatched the book from his hands. Stuffing it into her bag, she attempted to leave but Draco caught a hold of her arm tightly.

"Where did you get that?" he asked gruffly. 

"None of your damn business" she hissed. Draco opened his mouth as if to say something, but just then the door to Professor Snape's office opened and their Potions Master stepped out to face them.

"What are you four doing in here?" his soft menacing voice commanded, but Draco said nothing, still waiting for Hermione's answer. Crabbe and Goyle shot each other weary glances.

"I was just leaving" Hermione insisted, ignoring Draco as she tugged her arm from his grip and hurried out the door. Once outside she made a mad dash for the Great Hall, not wanting to leave any chance that Draco could catch her in the hallway.

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The events in the Potions classroom had shaken Hermione up, but she didn't make it obvious to her friends. She merely shrugged them off at dinner, leaving Harry and Ron to talk Quidditch. Draco was busy conversing with Pansy, though obviously not happily and Hermione sighed gladly as she made her way up to Gryffindor Tower. 

She sprawled herself out on her bed, glancing from book to book as her attention continued to waver before she felt her eyelids become heavy. Nodding in an attempt to keep her head high and her eyes open, she soon gave up and felt herself drift away to sleep.

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"So that's your name" came a soft voice.

"Hermione" it came again, as if singing her name upon the wind. Hermione was sitting on her bed in Gryffindor Tower. She got up, hearing the voice so close yet so far away. 

"Who are you?" she asked as she pulled the hangings from her bed. 

"You know who I am already" called the voice, this time from behind her. She spun around quickly, and heard nothing but a soft laugh. 

"Do not be silly Hermione, it will only hurt for a second" he whispered, before she felt a cold hand on her shoulder. He spun her around, looking her in the eyes for a moment. Fear filled those brown pools of light and it only made the experience more enjoyable for him.

"Luis?" she whispered, and she felt a small solemn tear roll down her face. He was going to kill her. He was going to steal her soul from her body and set it free. The hand on her shoulder moved up until it came to rest on her neck. He pulled her hair away from her face. Hermione made no move to get away. She couldn't. Paralyzed with fear she sobbed softly but he took no notice. Leaning over, he placed a small kiss on her neck, before biting down, piercing her flesh with his fangs. 

"NO!" Hermione woke up with a start. Her body drenched in sweat and breathing fast and deeply, she glanced around the room. Nothing. No-one. The hanging around Lavender and Parvati's bed's had been pulled and she could hear the sound of Parvati's soft snores.

Hermione glanced at her clock. 1:47am. Her short dream had taken so long. Running her fingers through her hair, she clutched it tightly in anger. All this fuss over a dream. A silly little dream. A dream caused by that book she had in her possession. She pulled the book out of her bag and glared at it only for a moment. Perhaps she should have never taken it from the library, after all, hadn't Mr. Weasley warned them of just how dangerous books could be? But this book had been in the library, meant for students to read? Right? No wait, it had been in storage. Perhaps this was the reason why. Throwing the book down next to her bed and getting up, Hermione tugged on her nightgown and headed down stairs to the common room.

Nobody was awake at this hour, to no surprise. She sat herself down in front of the fireplace. Perhaps she should have just stayed in bed and attempted to sleep. Goodness knows how tired she was but worry was all that consumed her. Worry over that stupid book. She considered for a moment, fetching it and bringing it to the common room. To roast there in front of the fire, but her mind refused to allow her to do so. For some reason she felt binded to the book.

Sighing and defeated, she leant back in her chair and watched the colors the common room fire painted across the ceiling. She let her eyelids droop slightly before she heard it, the soft voice that drafted in with the breeze.

"Hermione" it called softly and she shot up out of her chair, her eyes darting across the room. 

'Perhaps I'm just hallucinating' her mind raced, but the voice sounded again, this time stronger, deeper.

"Hermione my dearest" it called softly from behind her. She turned around to see no one was there, nothing, just silence. Turning back she gasped and almost lost her footing. Sitting across from where she was standing, was a tall man with shoulder length, light blonde hair. The flames in the fireplace illuminated his deep senseless eyes and his skin was deathly pale. 

"My dear, you really should cover up. It's rather cold tonight" he said softly, eyeing her thin robe. The man stood up and took a step towards Hermione, making her take a step back.

"You have nothing to fear," he pointed out, a little more than a whisper, "I'm not here to hurt you".

"Then why are you here… Luis" she asked, finally finding what could be defined as a voice. Her tone was an attempt to be strict, but her senses were so clouded that she had no idea what to do.

"So you have been reading my journal". He took another step forward and this time Hermione stood rooted to her spot. 

"I-if you want the journal back, I'll understand..." she offered but he shook his head. 

"I want you to keep it, as a gift for setting me free once more" 

"Setting you free?" 

A confused look past over Hermione's face and suddenly the man who had been in front of her disappeared.

"Yes, set me free", came his voice from behind her. He was so close she could feel his cold breath on the back of her neck. Hermione tried to speak but the words refused to come and she stood there, motionless as he ran his fingers down her arm. 

"You're the one," and he said lightly, "who awoke me from my sleep. You're the one who broke the seal on my journal and allowed myself to awaken from a century and a half of slumber".

The hair's on the back of Hermione's neck began to bristle and she shivered as he ran his fingers slowly down the curve of her back.

"W-what do you want with me?" she questioned as once again her voice returned. Luis stepped out from behind her and faced the younger girl. Watching the fear well up in her eyes and her breathing quicken, he almost laughed. She would have been so easy to take advantage of right then and there. To feed off of. Or perhaps for something more. But no. He could not hurt this girl. This one who had set him free, awoken him from his damnation and allowed his body to move once more. 

"I'm not quite sure, but somehow I shall show you my gratitude" he whispered.

They both stood there in the silence for a few more minutes as he admired her eyes, watched them study him and refuse to catch his gaze all at the same time. 

"Why were you made to sleep?" she asked, hoping that silence would not prevail for the next few hours. The last thing she needed was to stand there looking dumb as well as deaf. A hardened look came over Luis' face and Hermione almost regretted the question.

"My family, through the ages have been hunting me. Let's just leave it at that"

Hermione nodded quickly and they heard a loud thud sound from the dorms. Hermione glanced over and Luis furrowed his brow.

"I must go, I've not fed tonight and I wish to do so before sunrise" 

As she turned her gaze back to where he had stood, she realized he was gone. Looking around the common room she saw him nowhere in sight and she breathed a soft sigh of relief. 

****

~ENDCHAPTER3~

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A/N- Chapter three, ready and done. I just went through a rather scary phase where I thought I might have busted the A drive on my mum's computer (which is the only one I can use for net access) and since the computer I use to write my fics on (since I'm not allowed to use mum's computer) doesn't have a modem or a CD writer on it, I was worried like hell of how I was going to be able to get these chapters up. 

Anyway, it seems things are fine now. All questions and comments about this chapter are deeply appreciated. So remember to **review me**. It's not that hard and it takes such a short amount of time to let people know you're actually reading and what you like or hate about what you read.

Bellatrix Black


	4. Chapter Four: The Grim Reality

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything attributed to him. All I own is the plot to this fic and Luis. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

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A/N- To all avid readers of this fic, I am **so sorry** for taking so long writing this chapter. To be honest it wasn't the actual chapter I was writing; it was the next. To the reviewer Eclipse, let me please clear something up for you. I refuse to post one chapter and not have the next completed already (this way I can avoid any unneeded kinks in the story line). This is why I take "so long" updating [which might I add is not long compared to many other authors who only update on month by month basis's]. As for the chapter lengths, look closely. The chapters are most commonly 2000+ words, so let's not get testy. Thank you however for your constructive criticism. A higher thanks to all the kind words and advice from my wonderful reviewers (The Marauders, thank you so very much as you've given me good clarity for how I should persue future chapters) :p

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This chapter is dedicated to my beloved Morgie, because you're my comfort food.

**

Dark Souls  
By Bellatrix Black

** __

Chapter Four: The Grim Reality

Hermione sat in her bed that night silently, her eyes darted across the room every time Parvati and Lavender's bed's creaked or she heard the slightest of noises. She had lingered in the common room for mere moments after her encounter with Luis, before hurrying back up to her dorm and throwing herself into her bed. 

Perhaps she had imagined it all? She nagged herself, in a way believing that if she told herself that enough, it would become true. But his touch still lingered on her skin and she could still smell his essence lingering in the air. This man … this monster … She had found herself to be frightened; of all things. She glanced down and saw on the floor, the small black book that had been the beginning of her newly found fear. 

She leaned over the side of her bed and retrieved the journal. It was because of this _thing_ that Luis had been binded. And it was because of Hermione that he was now loose. She shuddered slightly. Perhaps she should have just burnt it, but it was a gift. A gift from _him_ and judging from what she had read so far, he was not one for impoliteness. 

Luis had said he was not going to hurt her though; and the very words from his mouth had soothed many of her qualms whilst he had been in her presence. But now, in the silence of her familiar dorm room, surrounded by darkness all but the light from a small flicking candle on her bedside, her mind raced with all sorts of possibilities. He could have killed her then and there, fed off of her and calmed that hunger that she had noticed flicker so briefly in his eyes. 

But his words had expressed gratitude. Gratitude for something she had done unknowingly, something that Hermione just knew deep down inside, was not going to have a good result. 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~ 

__

Loud drunken cheers erupted from a dimly lit building, the atmosphere was almost euphoric and the breeze carried the all too familiar stench of alcohol and sweat. Luis chuckled to himself as he walked towards the building, a local pub which seemed to be open at all hours of the night. He made his way inside and seated himself on one of the bar stools. His silver eyes traced the room carelessly, noting the males were all fairly drunk and hitting on the few waitresses who were still up for the late night shifts. 

"Can I help you Sir?" There came a petite voice from his right and he turned to see one of the waitresses. Her eyes shone like dark almonds and her wavy black hair traced down her back. Many men would probably find her appearance appealing, this tall exotic woman, but all Luis could see was just another body. Her heart however … her heart … it was beating so strongly in her chest as she surveyed him that Luis heard it pounding in his ears. The sound was maddening, intoxicating, a hidden torture and Luis knew that he did not have much time left before his body ignored his mind and allowed the blood lust to set in. 

She stood there awkwardly, gesturing to the bar, "Is there something you'd like to drink?"

He smiled charmingly, he would have to just play the same old game and hope that this woman was easily swayed.

"Whatever you're willing to serve me will be fine" his soft voice beckoned and the woman's face softened, her smile spoke volumes…

****

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

The sun soon rose around Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hermione was awoken by the sounds of someone running up the stairwell outside her room and she sat up wearily, sleep still clouding her eyes as she surveyed her room. Lavender was searching through her drawers, muttering to herself about some lost Divination paper and she could see Parvati's bag was no longer by her bed, meaning she had already made her way down to the common room to wait for Lavender.

"Oh you're awake" Lavender said as she glanced over at Hermione, who had just slid out from under the covers, "We tried waking you but you just rolled back asleep, we figured you'd get up on your own eventually". Lavender merely shrugged to herself and threw some of the contents from inside her drawer into her bag. 

"Thanks anyway" Hermione mumbled as she ran a comb through her hair and quickly changed into her school robes. 

"Breakfast is almost over anyway, but do you want me to wait for you?" Lavender asked, which was one of the few pleasantries that actually seemed to happen between the two girls. They weren't friends per-say, but they did often extend the olive branch to get along. Hermione shook her head as she started sorting through her books and papers. Lavender took this as her cue to leave and she promptly did so, leaving Hermione to the silence of the dorm room.

"Let's see… Arithmacy… then Care of Magical Creatures…" she began muttering to herself, when suddenly a large tawny barn owl swooped into the room before setting itself down on the end of her bed. In its beak it held what Hermione soon recognised as the Daily Prophet. She promptly placed five Knuts in the small pouch affixed to the owl's leg and with a soft hoot; it took off out the open window. She ignored the paper, stuffing it into her bag along with her schedule and hurried out of Gryffindor Tower.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

The people in the Great Hall were all chatting between themselves as they filed out and headed in the direction of their own respective classes. Hermione made her way to her seat in between Ron and Harry, greeting them before she took a quick bite of her bagel. As soon as she did so, the plates in front of them were cleared and she kicked herself mentally for sleeping in. 

"Where've you been Hermione?" Ron asked as they all stood up. 

She shrugged and glanced at the two boys, obviously they had realised that something was amiss here. Hermione was seldom late for breakfast and on most days; she was the first one down into the common room, waiting impatiently for her friends to wake up. Not only that, but her contained and isolated behaviour recently had left both boys pondering crazy explanations for her erratic behaviour.

"Hermione … is there something you're not telling us?" Harry asked softly as they exited the Great Hall and she narrowed her eyes in annoyance. 

"What? I arrive late and suddenly it's the end of the world?" She snapped and Ron flinched slightly. Harry sighed, " It just seems a bit out of character"

"I slept in, nobody's perfect" 

The trio quickened their pace as they came upon a group of Hufflepuff first years, all of which seemed quite lost and it was almost time for lesson's the begin. 

"Sorry Hermione, we were just curious" Ron grumbled and she rolled her eyes, "You're not mad at us are you?" 

Ignoring the question, she merely mumbled to them both, "Get going to Divination, I'll see you later". 

A part of her was glad that she had Arithmacy first that day; she could be all-alone and not have to deal with their blatant stares and curious faces. But another part of her groaned inwardly, she seemed to be pushing away her best friends ever so slowly and right now, that was the last thing she neither wanted nor needed. She sighed and hurried down one of the corridors she knew would lead to Professor Vector's classroom. She noticed a group of Ravenclaw girls in front of her, chatting between themselves loudly and giggling every now and then. Hermione rolled her eyes and made to walk past them.

"Oh yeah, it's such a tragedy though. She was always so sweet to everyone" one of the girls muttered and the others nodded their heads and broke out in a chorus of agreement. 

"The Daily Prophet said that they don't know who the culprit is, but the Ministry says they doubt it was working for You-Know-Who" 

Hermione glanced back at the group of girls, wondering for a moment just who they had been talking about. She let the thought run through her mind for a moment before she arrived at her Arithmacy classroom. Hurrying inside and taking her seat in the front of the classroom, she watched as the last few students began filing in and Professor Vector stepped forward to initiate the lesson. 

"Now remember, whenever you're dividing the fraction…"

Hermione's concentration wavered from mild interest to sheer boredom. She sighed, listening half-heartedly and randomly taking notes, knowing that she could just look it all up in her copy of Numerology and Grammatica when it came to doing her homework. Midway through the lesson, a familiar awkward feeling began to consume her as she searched through her bag for another piece of parchment. It was almost as if she were being watched… 

Nonsense! She told herself and she took a glance at the people behind her; all of whom seemed deeply engrossed in the lesson. Except for one… she noted and to her dislike her eyes soon fell upon Draco Malfoy. His silver blonde hair sat roughly against his pale white skin and his steely grey eyes bore deep holes into her forehead. His gaunt face bore no expression at all and she glared at him before turning back to her bag. 

After what seemed like an eternity, Professor Vector dismissed her class and Hermione gathered up her belongings and quickly made her way out of the classroom. She hurried down the corridor, glancing back only to find that Draco was making his way out of the doorway. He caught her eye and she turned into the corridor on her left, not wanting another confrontation with Hogwarts proudest pure blood. She had completely pushed the events in the Potions dungeon into the back of her mind and now it had all come swimming back to her. 

The journal; Draco knew about the journal. And what's more, he had not seemed happy at all with its presence in her possession. She made to turn into another corridor on her left when she was stopped suddenly by a figure in front of her. 

'_Dammit_' she berated herself. She had walked right into him. 

"Might I ask why you're stalking me Malfoy?" she hissed at Draco as she took two steps back. He glowered darkly at her, as if insulted.

"Why on earth would I be stalking a mudblood?" he retorted, but she was unfazed. The word mudblood had become trivial for her now as he had used it almost every other week for the past three years whenever they were in each others company. She often wondered how easily such a word could become a part of a person's vocabulary so fast. Then again, this was Malfoy they were talking about.

"You tell me! You're the one who's been staring at me during class and following me down dark and lifeless corridors!" she growled, but he stood his ground, his smirk unwavering and his eyes shining with unspoken malice. There was silence between them for a minute or so, the air practically crackling with the tension between the two.

"The journal," he stated, "I want the journal".

Hermione shook her head and glared at him once more. 

"It's not your's Malfo-" she began, but he cut her off.

"It is a family heirloom Granger and it therefore belongs with the family."

He held out his hand, as if expecting her to find reasoning in his words and hand it over to him. She shook her head and took another step away from him. 

"The journal is mine" Hermione said sternly, her voice dripping with disdain. Draco narrowed his eyes at her, almost as if sizing her up and she shuffled uncomfortably under his gaze. 

"You have no idea what you've done" he murmured, his voice so thick that she could have sworn she heard him growl. He turned away from her and she heard him call as he walked down the corridor, "I wonder, just how many people Luis will kill before you decide the journal is no longer of importance".

"What's that supposed to mean?" she hissed softly and he turned around for a moment, nodding towards her backpack and the Daily Prophet, which was peeking out of the top of it. She slowly slid her backpack off her shoulder and undid the latch. Glancing over at where Draco had been, she found him no longer present and shook him from her mind as she undid the paper bindings that held the newspaper closed and opened it up in front of her. 

**

Waitress Killed In Vampire Attack  
By Renda Cobblepott

** __

Early this morning, the body of a young waitress was found outside the Three Broomsticks in the town of Hogsmeade. The town, which neighbours Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was taken aghast by the brutal slaying. Ministry officials have announced however that this was probably the single action of an individual rather than a planned strike by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The body, identified as Madame Maria Rosmerta was found at 4am this morning by a group of wizards who were exiting the well known pub. Two puncture wounds on her neck and an investigation there after proved that she had died from excess blood loss. Ministry officials have confirmed reports that it was indeed a vampire bite, but have not been able to narrow down who is the exact culprit…. 

****

~ENDCHAPTER4~

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A/N- Ok, I hope you guys liked this chapter, as I liked it more than the original one I wrote. Thanks so much for all your lovely reviews and tips, I appreciate them a lot :p I'm sorry for any fans of Madame Rosmerta, but she was just such a wonderful target to kill off and I think it just suited Luis. Either way thanks for reading!

Kay a.k.a Bellatrix Black


	5. Chapter Five: Opened Eyes

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Disclaimer: I do not, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway shape or form. No profit is being made from this and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. All I do own is Luis, his journal and the plot for this fic.

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Dark Souls

Written By Bellatrix Black

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Chapter Five: Opened Eyes

Shock... no, it couldn't at all be shock. There was nothing to be shocked about; Luis himself had stated that he had needed to feed. But Madame Rosmerta? Of all people ... Hermione felt a strong feeling of disgust seep into her system. Silently she reminisced to herself about the beautiful young waitress from the Three Broomsticks who used to greet them at the door, smile sweetly as she brought them their butterbeers and give them ideas of even more wonderful things they could do whilst wandering around Hogsmeade.

And now she was gone. Murdered to be more precise. But who was to blame? Hermione shuddered. Luis? The bloodthirsty vampire whose life she had read right in front of her eyes the past few weeks? The one ... the most probable to have committed this murder. There had been no other warnings of vampires in the area. During the five years Hermione had been at Hogwarts; never once had there been any insinuation of active vampires in Britain, let alone Hogsmeade. 

Or was it herself? The very person who had unknowingly unlocked this creature of the night and allowed him once more to roam the world of the living. Hermione looked back over to where Malfoy had stood. There was no one there and she could hear the faint chatter of students down the hall adjoining to the one she was in. Glancing once more at the newspaper, as if expecting for a moment for the words to change and loosen the knot in the pit of her stomach, she quickly shoved it into her backpack, turned and headed back towards the main hallway. This would need much contemplation. But it was neither the time nor place for such.

****

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Harry Potter stood impatiently, waiting for Hagrid to leave his hut and commence the Care of Magical Creatures, which he loved almost as much as he dreaded. No doubt Hagrid would probably have some insane idea of a creature to introduce to the class of sixth years. Ron ran up and gave a sharp knock on the large wooden door of the hut. The door swung open and out stepped the giant sized man. To many his appearance would seem menacing, but Harry knew different as the custom warm smile passed over the larger man's face as he glanced back and forth between the boys.

"'ello 'Arry, Ron" he nodded quickly as he dragged a large black crate out into the yard in front of the students. "But where's 'ermione?" he asked as he noticed one third of the trio was missing.

"She had Arithmacy, I'm sure she'll be here soon" Ron answered reassuringly, glancing back up towards the castle in some hope that Hermione would suddenly appear before class commenced.

"She'd better get here soon, we're already late is it is" Hagrid grunted as he received furtive glares from the impatient Slytherins, all of whom had of course been looking for some excuse to complain and poke fun at. Malfoy groaned and muttered something incoherent to the Slytherins by his side and sure enough they each in turn broke out in laughter.

Hagrid sighed and told Harry and Ron he'd have to begin the lesson anyway. Opening up the large black crate he reached in and began extracting small, black, pointy creatures from within. The lesson went on like usual, with Hagrid explaining the creature ("'ey're called Gremlins, these ones are from South Africa") and the Slytherins cracking a snide joke every sentence or so. Halfway through the lesson, Harry noticed a figure exiting the Castle and heading down towards them. 

"Hermione!" He greeted softly and she smiled slightly. Giving Hagrid a quick apology; claiming she'd gone to the library and lost track of time, she promptly took her place by Harry's side.

"Why'd you go the library anyway?" Ron questioned as Hagrid returned back to instructing Seamus how to hold one of the small fidgeting creatures. 

"There was a book Professor Vector mentioned in today's lesson, I wanted to see if there were any spare copies" She lied quickly and faced Hagrid, hoping that they bought her answer. Harry and Ron exchanged glances but said nothing. Like always, she noted to herself, they said nothing.

****

~*~*~*~

The sun soon set and the world around him was plunged in darkness. The night was young, the air full of many scents; human, beast and often a mixture of both. His handsome face was one of glee that night as he relished his freedom. The girl, this Hermione was still plaguing his thoughts though and this was one of the few things that would remain unfinished business. Freedom was not true unless one was not binded to anything; and she had unknowingly binded herself to his every thought, whisper and word. 

There was still much to do though, he noted to himself. And he had still not chosen a proper reward for this young girl. It had been but a day and still now it was one of the few things he could concentrate on. Luis had taken board in the unused shack many of the locals had spoken of in the quiet town not far from the school. Legend had it that it was haunted, my how easily frightened mortals were. He had taken any last money off of the beautiful waitress he had fed off of the previous night and had used it to buy a spare change of clothes for himself. Not much more would be needed.

He would not be returning to the lavish bar in which he had captured his kill the previous night. It was far too dangerous and Luis was always one to learn from his mistakes, not admitting them to anyone of course. Pride was a trait he himself would always reign high for himself; one of the few Malfoy traits he would ever pride himself on. His shoulder length silvery-blonde hair, his dark steely grey eyes and his pale and sallow face were the looks on which he hated as much as cherished. But the arrogance, the dedication and the ambition were all lost on him. 

Inadvertedly, he tired of the silence surrounding him and made his way across the finely lit village until he came to the other, less used bar. The Hog's Head. He of course, would not be feeding here. It was much too dangerous and if anyone there so much as noticed him; his identity and release could soon be known by the very same who had locked him away. 

The times had changed, the world was different now and other than his previous interaction in that cheesily named bar; The Three Broomsticks and his feast upon the occupants of the small cabin, he had endured no encounters with those of this time. Their behaviour was different now, mortals... they had evolved into somewhat more of a drunken society. He chuckled softly and entered the dimly lit bar, seating himself at one of the tables in the corner and ordering a Gillywater for appearance sake. He glanced at the newspaper on a table next to him and his lip curled.

Pulling it towards him, he flipped it open until he came upon the article he had expected: A report on the death of that waitress. He read it through, lavishing the detail and bewilderment of the wizards in the featured pictures; their puzzled expressions only added to his belief that one of the things to have not changed in all this time was the incompetence of the Ministry officials. Closing the newspaper, his gaze swept across the cover of The Daily Prophet and he growled deep in his throat. His kill of the waitress had not been the spectacle of the front page; though this wasn't the cause to arouse his anger. There stood a large bolder headline and pictures of several different men: all looking like the prominent snide wizards that they were. Though it was only one of them that stirred the anger deep inside of him, one of whose eyes were causing his blood if anything to boil. One of who looked all too familiar...

****

Deatheaters Escape From Azkaban

By Oriver Prodfickle

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The Ministry has now fully and officially declared the truth to the rumour that several of Azkaban's high security prisoners have indeed escaped the elusive prison. The men were all known followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (in other words, deatheaters); in fact it was for this very reason that they had been jailed. Warren Nott, Burke Rookwood, Watson Macnair, Lucius Malfoy, Theodore Privet, Thomas Crabbe and Ulric Goyle had all been detained and held in the Prison following the Ministry's acceptance of the words of both Professor Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter; the Boy Who Lived. No official conclusion has been met concerning how they seven managed to escape as the prison is now guarded by top Aurors after the Dementors abandoned their posts. It is suspected that they received help You-Know-Who but there is much speculation concerning this....

"Lucius" he hissed softly, his voice so sharp it caused a man on his side to glare at him in annoyance, his eyes already red from an excess of alcohol and lack of sleep. Holding a finger to his lips, his red rum induced faced bobbed side to side as he whispered, "Shhhh". Luis shook his head and grunted; you can change the time but you can't change the drunks. He stood up and headed for the bar, watching the bar owner carefully. He was an old balding man, what was left of his hair had gone grey and his dirty and stingy shirt showed he cared nothing for his self image. Casually, Luis leaned against the bar spreading the newspaper in front of the man.

"My, it's such a tragedy" he said softly, indicating towards the blurb concerning the death of Madame Rosmerta. The bartender nodded absent mindedly, glancing over the newspaper boredly. 

"And just think, first a vampire attack and now escapist's from Azkaban" he continued, watching the man's face expression to one of slight worry and agitation.

"With all luck Harry Potter or Dumbledore will put an end to You-Know-Who and we'll be able to get on with our lives" The bartender muttered, cleaning one of the empty glasses on the counter top with an old rag. Nodding, the vampire sized up the man. This was a relatively busy town, even he himself had heard of it back in his day. One thing he would always remember was all the bits of gossip that floated in the air from scenes like this. Perhaps... just perhaps...

"Tell me, what do you know of these deatheaters," He asked coolly, not letting his eyes stray from the paper, "The ones who have escaped".

But the bartender merely shook his head, "Practically nothing. Most of them had pretty high positions in the Ministry before they were jailed; some of them even have kids at that there Hogwarts". The old man gestured out the window into the darkness and Luis' lip curled.

"Which ones have children studying there?" He questioned and the old man's eyes narrowed.

"Why? You planning to teach them a lesson or summat?" He asked but Luis chuckled lightly. 

"Of course not, after all they're just children. A child cannot be held responsible for the sins of the father" he gestured and the old man's face softened.

"Well some of those kids are just as bad as their parents, I'd say. This one kid there acts like he owns the god damned place. Mind you, his father was a school Governor until a few years back. But nonetheless, he comes in here with that Parkinson girl every Hogsmeade visit and acts like the same pompous git that his father would. Mind you he probably would never have been caught dead in a place like this" The bartender began issuing around the room; it was obvious that this was definitely one of the seedier parts of Hogsmeade. Luis almost jolted upright at one specific word. 

__

Parkinson 

Perhaps it would be too much of a coincidence; perhaps he was just too desperate for some insinuation that he was close to the knowledge he was seeking... Perhaps...

".... At least he doesn't bother bringing his two lunks into here, they cause more trouble than they are worth. I have no idea why he even bothers coming in here himself though methinks he dislikes the crowd at The Three Broomsticks..."

Luis cocked his head to his side, glancing once more down at the newspaper before back to the old man.

"Who is this child you speak of?" His soft voice questioned.

"That Malfoy kid, Draco I think..."

~*~*~*~

"Hermione, we need to talk" Harry beckoned and the girl closed her eyes exasperatedly. This was the third time today they had tried to get her to speak and she had managed to give them the slip. But now she was in the common room, a group of third years were standing by the doorway to the dorms chatting and Seamus Finnigan was leaning against the portrait hole casually surveying a game of chess between Dean and Ginny. There was no way out and unless she wanted to cause a scene; she'd have to stay and attempt to make do with whatever conversation they had in mind. Of course, usually she would have been more than pleased to sit down with her two best friends, to chat and perhaps even argue over trivial things. But not tonight, tonight of all nights she needed to be alone and alas it was the only luxury she was being deprived of. 

Sighing in frustration she flung her bag down onto the couch where Ron sat and sat down across from him. 

"Okay, fine. What is it you want to talk about?" She quipped and Ron and Harry glanced back and forth between themselves. Now was their chance to finally get some answers concerning her ... unusual behaviour during the previous weeks.

"Lately Hermione you've seemed a little... well..." Ron started though he was obviously searching for words, which would not upset or enrage her.

"Different" Harry cut in and Ron nodded.

"Different how?"

"Well, you've been acting a bit ... high strung and we just wondering, what's wrong? What's going on?" Harry's voice coursed with concern and Hermione sighed, feeling guilty as she noticed the eagerness in Ron's face. 

"It's nothing really Harry, its just school. If I can get higher marks this year in my OWLS then hopefully next year my NEWTS will be easier. I'm sorry, really I am for making you worry and all. But seriously, I should be fine" Hermione's voice was strong and she tugged all the rest of her frustration's to the back of her mind. These were her friends, if anything perhaps she should be confiding in them about the journal. Perhaps they could even help her discover what she should do about Luis, if she should choose to do anything at all. But her inner anxiety won over and she began shrinking back into the shell of her former confined self. 

Luis was dangerous, she was sure of this. Harry had enough on his plate already since Voldemort's return. He was constantly being frisked off to Dumbledore's office for some odd meeting of some sort with Fudge or the Order. Adding to that the loss of Sirius... Maybe it would be too much for him to deal with right then and there. And as for Ron, as much as she loved him for his concern and care, he was still struggling to come to grips with his position as Keeper on the Quidditch team. The last thing she wanted for him to worry about was some bloodthirsty vampire that had also claimed that he was not going to hurt her. It would be far too much fuss over a rather trivial thing. Perhaps she was just looking for excuses; she scolded herself mentally and shuffled in her seat.

"So it's just the books then? Just studying and all that jazz?" Harry's worried voice broke through her thoughts and she nodded quickly.

"Of course it is Harry, I mean what else could it be?"

"Look Hermione, forget about the books and the exams. Halloween is in a few days, just concentrate on having a little fun and enjoying yourself. There's nothing to worry about! Now come on, let's have a game of Gobstones before bed" Ron issued towards the small marble-like stones on the desk in front of him. Hermione smiled a genuine smile, of all things at all of times and leaned over placing the stones in front of her. These were her friends and she was going to be damned before she let some careless worry come between herself and them.

"Sure, of course" she said as Harry seated himself next to her at the small table. 

~*~*~*~

Draco Malfoy leaned back in his chair, letting the dark embers from the fireplace, which sat before him, shower his face in crimson light. Behind him he could hear the soft whispers of his house mates either gossiping of muttering something concerning the latest news concerning the freed deatheaters. His thoughts however were no longer on his father, nor the murder of that waitress from Hogsmeade or even Halloween. His thoughts had strayed to that journal which the mudblood had in her possession. His thoughts had strayed and they stayed as he tried to recollect every detail the small black book had had to offer.

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Luis Malfoy...

The name resounded in his head a thousand times, like a bedtime story from which he could faintly remember. Though it had not been a bedtime story, more of a legend to be exact. One of which his father had referred to quite a few times whenever their discussions had turned to their ancestors. The Malfoy family tree was long and extensive. Lucius Malfoy had made sure Draco was one to study it and perhaps even learn from the mistakes of he past. Luis was an old soul, who Lucius had referred to in disgust, who had been turned because of his own weaknesses. This of course had been the very reason keeping the Parkinson's and Malfoy's divided. A gap that only recently Draco believed he would be able to bridge. 

But now Luis was free and this could mean only one thing. He would have to contact his father. Needless to say it would not be an easy process; Dumbledore had been watching him rather closely since his return for his sixth year at Hogwarts. But he had to reach his father and tell him of this little problem. Luis had been binded for a reason, one of which Lucius had made sure Draco had known ever since he had first heard the utterance of his name. 

Luis had been imprisoned and what's more was it was done by his own family, neither because of wealth or love.

But because of life.

****

~ENDCHAPTER5~

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A/N- Chapter five complete and i hope people have enjoyed it. So now Luis knows of Draco's actual existence, fascinating. And Draco must contact daddy dearest. But what of Hermione? What plans does Luis have in store for her? Review and perhaps the answers might come faster :p

Bellatrix Black


	6. Chapter Six: Shadows Of The Past

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in any way, shape or form. No profit is being made from this fic and therefore no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. He is copyrighted to though not limited to: JK Rowling, Warner Bros. and many other franchises. 

A/N- Thanks to all my lovely reviewers, I do heart each and every one of you. So as a treat to you all, this chapter is longer. To sum this up, today's chapter has a diary entry, a recovering Hermione, Luis almost getting hit by a 'large metal creature with beams of light', I bring in a character from Luis' past and a mysterious Draco. There's a lot here to center on Luis and the new character so please read carefully. Enjoy!

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This chapter is dedicated to Bwendan, because I'll always remember your vampire-ish side.

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Dark Souls

By Bellatrix Black

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Chapter Six: Shadows Of The Past

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Alexandra, yes she was my beloved, both in flesh, blood and bone. My lover, my sire, my comrade and my mentor, she guided me through the first of my many turmoil filled years teaching me all she knew of our kind and nature. She used her beauty to attract her men of all trades. Her innocent face was always the last thing many vulnerable yet deeply stupid men saw before she took their lives. 

I often questioned her on why I was not among the dead. She had allowed me to live, given me life to some extent and in doing so, traded in her life within the pack of vampires I had met that fateful night many years ago. She merely smiled, giving me some mere task to do to distract myself from the question. It was the same each time and I eventually learned not to press onwards. 

Never once in all the time I had known her, did she turn another mortal. But I soon realised the very answer for this: She did not want me to do so either. After returning to London, we soon discovered another group of vampires who roamed the fair city. Young, hot blooded, careless, Alexandra soon decided to lead them. Most of them knew not the identities of their sires, others had merely left their own as they disagreed with the prospect of 'control'. These ones were the most dangerous of our kind.

We called them the predators among the dead. Their viciousness had driven them out of neighbouring villages and their lack of human pretense had them hunted by the very humans who had wished to contain them. They knew no bounds and truth be told, they only cared about the kill. I was looked down upon by them, something I did not care to dwell on. They were but mere humans trapped with a vampires thirst. Their belief that I was weak simply because I was lead forward by my sire was meger and down trodden. Alexandra urged me to ignore them, saying that they themselves were the worst of our kind. 

Unfortunately her words had fallen on deaf ears.

This part of my story, of my life, is a chapter which I myself have blocked away to the back of my mind. Thinking of it now it seems like a memory long forgotten. Like some nursery rhyme I had heard as a child, though this nursery rhyme was not sweet and happy. It was of great pain, anguish and loss.

As much as my heart had belonged to Alexandra, I could not ignore their words and in a way they had made some kind of sense in my then feeble young mind. Was I but a lapdog then? But my master's play thing? They soon insisted that one day she would leave me; that I could not possibly be the only vampire she had sired in her lifetime. My loyalty was wavering ever so slightly and her words sealed the ever lasting fate of our paths.

'Don't you dare question me,' she had snapped at me, her sweet angelic face contorting to a devilish alter-identity, 'Many others have done so and as you can see, I have cared nothing for them onwards.'

Her words had cut into me and it was then I knew that I could no longer stay. My pride had been destroyed and my trust in was gone. At the time, it seemed to me like her loyalty to me was dependent on my dedication to her. Rage filled me and I gathered my cloak and hat, bidding my good-byes to the few who passed me I walked out of the door into the dead of the night and I knew only one thing.

I was now truly alone.

Hermione closed the small black book and tucked it under her pillow. Her eyes were heavy and she felt sleep nearing her. Now, she was beginning to understand this man even more. Perhaps if she could understand him then she would be able to escape him. Her thoughts had been travelling back to him every spare second since she had returned to her dorm. The eerie silence as Parvati and Lavender lay in their beds sleeping had caused her to once again think about the man who had visited her the previous night. 

After reading through another passage in the book she couldn't help but imagine Luis himself doing these actions, she oddly enough realised that she did not know him as well as she had thought. She wondered if he would be visiting her once more but pushed the thought out of her mind. She had spent two hours in the common room playing gobstones and drinking butterbeer with Harry and Ron, she had been having the most fun she'd had in ages. 

Hermione had put all the stress, all the worries of the previous twenty-four hours to the back of her mind and concentrated on the present; which was a relaxed and delightful evening with her friends where she should be able to go to bed with a clear head and soul.

The last thing she needed to worry about was a blood thirsty killer visiting her in the middle of the night.

'Let's hope it doesn't come to that' Hermione insisted as she drew her covers over herself, laid her head on her pillow and wished for her body to sleep. Her body was tired. Her mind, it would seem, was not.

****

~*~*~*~

'So the Malfoy heir was at Hogwarts,' Luis mused to himself as he exited Hogs Head and strolled down the long winding street. This had not been something he had anticipated, 'And his father is an escaped felon'.

He almost laughed at the mere notion of such a thing. For a Malfoy to disgrace his name was something he had never heard of; well, other than himself of course. And this one had been following some 'un-named' person. She shook his head, almost feeling a spring in his step as he walked. This had turned out better than he could have possibly imagined. The Malfoy boy was so close now and his father was just out of his grasp. 

He could feel his skin burning with delight, before he suddenly realised that it was not delight causing it. It was hunger; for even though the night was young and the clock was yet to strike twelve, he felt the thirst stir within him. Luis growled softly under his breath, noticing an elderly couple walk past him, he shook his head in an attempt to keep his thoughts clear. 

'No,' he told himself, 'Not here, you should have more sense than that.'

His eyes lingered on them and soon came to rest on a small piece of wood hanging out of the man's side pocket. Luis silently plucked it up and continued on forward until he could no longer see the two. He waved it around in front of him for a moment, a large smirk on his face as he observed it. He had not held one of these in centuries. Even as a vampire he had not bothered with magic, but had become dependent on his strength to perform most of his deeds. He pocketed the wand on the inside of his cloak and closed his eyes, breathing in the fresh nights air. 

And the scents that lingered upon it.

He found them too hard to define at this time. Sighing he opened his eyes and found himself nearing a clearing, a large wooden sign marked it with the words _Hogsmeade Station_. 

Luis was on a large solid granite platform and looking down he saw large bars of metal which lay pinned to the ground. Curious, he soon jumped down onto the dirt, wood and steel, studying the design and wondering what kind of Rune it was exactly. Not only this, but what was it doing right here where anyone could walk on it? And since when were Rune's made of metal and wood? He ran his fingers over the cold steel and looked up as he heard a loud siren echo into the night. 

The noise was erupting from a large metal creature which seemed to be heading straight for him. It's eyes were that of bright light and Luis stood awe struck, unable to move as it came closer and closer, making it's devil cry sound off into the night.

And suddenly he felt a hand gruffly grab him, pulling him up onto the Platform once more. Behind him he could feel the wind building as the metal creature past him but inches behind his very back. It's speed was so fast that he could not see it clearly as he gazed over his shoulder. It soon passed him, it's devil cry no more and the light it shed drifted off until it was no more but a star on land.

"Are you completely mad Luis?" A voice infront of him hissed and he spun his head back around. Infront of him stood a beautiful raven-haired woman. Her almond eyes were those so familiar to him and her pale skin reflected her blood red lips. She wore a dark red blouse, her long silky skirt was black as was her cloak. On her face sat a large frown.

"Dear god…" He gasped and the corner of her lips curved upwards into somewhat of an amused smile.

"There is no god Luis," she began, watching the surprise flow over him, "For if there were we would certainly be his mistakes."

He ignored her words, not caring for them in the least as he searched her face, the seductive smile and the same features he had had imprinted on his memory came flowing back to him.

"So what brings you back to me, my beloved?"

****

~*~*~*~

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Luis Malfoy lives. The mudblood has his journal. There has already been a death in Hogsmeade. I doubt he has appeared to the mudblood yet. Curiosity rules me as I wonder just what to do next.

Draco.

Draco re-read the letter after what seemed to himself a thousand times. Yes, it was discreet. Discreet enough anyway. It would have to do, if it were to be intercepted he could just claim it was some notes he himself had written to remind himself for any careless reason. He took a hold of his wand, tucked the note into his pocket, stood up from the desk in the Slytherin Common Room and quietly strode over to the Portrait Hole. A few Slytherin's were still awake, though they were silent and did not so much as glance at him as he left the Common Room. 

He made his way silently up through the Dungeons, careful of any noises he may hear, knowing well enough that Filch could be lurking just around the corner. He was indeed silent, one of the many traits he had earned himself from lurking around his father's library when he knew he was not supposed to. After what seemed like an eon, he found himself at the Owlery and he hurried inside. 

The musty smell of owl droppings and old hay filled the room and he almost wretched in disgust. This room was most definitely not one of his favourites and usually he would have waited until the morning before he were to send the message, as he could do so when his eagle owl came in the mornings; most commonly with a box of sweets from his mother. Instead he bore the smell and hurried over to a common barn owl, something else he usually would not have used. 

'But one must be discreet,' he mused to himself as he attached the message to the owl's leg and issued it to go to his father. Watching it swoop down out of the window, he waited the few seconds before it was no longer in sight before turning back around and hurrying out of the disgusting room.

****

~*~*~*~

"Alohomora," Hermione whispered and the lock infront of her gave a soft click. She turned the knob and entered the large room, piled high with mountains upon mountains of books. It was the library.

Sleep was wasted on her, she had finally agreed after suffering for an hour tossing and turning beneath her covers. Instead she had decided to leave her room and go to the one place she was sure would have some answers for her. It always did. She hurried past large shelves and through assorted sections until she came upon Madame Pince's desk, behind which stood two large doors with a large sign posted.

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The Restriction Section

Hermione shrugged off the guilt she felt for inadvertedly 'breaking' into the library and alohomora'ed another set of locks infront of her. If seeking knowledge was a crime, then she had most certainly been a criminal during her entire time at Hogwarts. It was not as if she were doing anything dangerous, she had come here for one specific reason.

To find out all she could about vampires.

She had already read through almost all of the other books concerning the species and she knew that they could be no help with anything she had to face. Luis seemed to haunt her and in a way she was disgusted that she had continued to read his journal. He was a murderer, a stealer of souls and yet his words… they had entrapped her. She had wondered if the answers she had been looking for could be found in the journal, but she could not bare to just skip the tale to the end. 

She held a torch infront of her as the titles of the books ran infront of her eyes. Finally they came to rest upon a large navy blue book, it's spine welded the title "Vampyrs: The Lost". 

She pulled it away from the shelf and sat down on the cold stone floor, flicking through the pages absentmindedly. The preface bore the most common of facts and she began skimming the first chapter; for what? She did not know. She had no idea what she intended to find in the library that night, she had come merely out of on a whim that it would ease her mind and grant her something to do as sleep evaded her.

"Well this is certainly interesting," Came a soft voice from the doors of the Restricted Section. Standing infront of them stood Draco Malfoy, his expression one of hidden amusement. Hermione slammed the book shut quickly and stood up, attempting to hide her shock and guilt as the young man watched her from afar. 

"What are you doing here Malfoy?" She insisted and his custom sneer found it's way back to his face.

"I could ask you the same question. It's not very common for Hogwarts favourite mudblood to be breaking into the Restricted Section, least of all if she doesn't have Wonderboy and Weasley by her side," Draco muttered flatly as he slowly walked across the otherwise silent room towards her and tugged the large book out of her hands. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance, perhaps even embarressment as he read the title. 

"Vampyre's? Well…" He began, his grey eyes glinting malevolently in the torchlight, "It would seem I did not waste my breath on you today".

"What are you doing here?" Hermione repeated, her gaze was cold and calculating. Of course, Draco was used to this behaviour from many a person and merely brushed it off. 

"I saw the library doors were opened, considering Pince usually locks up around nine I thought I may as well see who had been so daring as to enter."

She was unimpressed by his sarcastic tone and rolling her eyes, she reached over and retrieved the book from his fingertips. 

"Cut the crap Malfoy and tell me, why are you really here?" 

He went silent for a minute or so, as if thinking over which approach to take with the young girl. His earlier attempt after Arithmacy had been a failure to say the least… But he had made her curious, he decided. And perhaps curiosity would be the key to having the journal returned to him.

"Actually, I'll be honest with you, I was just strolling by the library to find the doors open. The only thing that's causing me to still stand here at this very moment is the fact that you have something I want."

"I told you before Malfoy, the journal is mine."

The silver-blonde boy let out a haunting, throaty laugh; something Hermione had never once heard him do during the five years that she'd been acquainted with him and she shuddered slightly.

"It's the other way around Granger, a person cannot simply _own_ something as dark and cursed as Luis' journal. On the contrary, the journal owns the reader. From the very moment you turned the first page it has owned you in some way, shape or form."

Hermione shook her head, it didn't make sense at all. The journal was a possession, not an alive _being_ which could order her around. It was just a book. What harm could come from _reading_ a book?

"You've been down in the dungeons too long, your beginning to confuse your own thoughts with fantasies," She muttered to him and his face turned sour.

"So tell me, are you still reading it then?" He spat at her and she frowned slightly, not wanting to answer. Draco smirked knowingly, turning to the bookshelves and running a finger along the spines of a the books infront of him. There was nothing but silence between the two as he seemed completely enraptured in waiting for her answer. 

"Why do you want the journal?"

He turned to face her quickly as she had just asked one of the questions he had not expected, let alone knew how to answer. 

"What's so special about it that has you come to me and ask nicely for it?" Hermione continued. 

Draco opened his mouth, then closed it; thinking of the best plausible answer. She had read between the lines, he should have expected this. But now came the even bigger task of explaining something he himself did not fully understand. Did he need to explain though? She was just a mudblood after all. But she was a mudblood who had played her cards right and who had something which was just out of his grasp.

"The journal, you do realise that by opening it you released him?" 

Hermione nodded.

"Well did you ever wonder why he was locked away to begin with?"

"Of course I did," She shot back defensively.

"And have you ever wondered who locked him away?" 

Hermione's eyes widened, first in surprise and then in confusion. No, it couldn't have been Draco who had locked away this vampire, after all Luis had claimed he had been binded for over a century. Luis had been before Draco's time. Hell, he'd been before Tom Riddle's time as well.

"Your ancestors?" She quipped.

"Exactly."

"Why?"

"Because Granger," He muttered darkly, his eyes locking with her's and his pale face now contorted with some unreadable expression, "Luis Malfoy did not just dislike his family. He killed them off. One by one."

Draco's darkened face and the eerie silence that seeped into the room caused Hermione to shudder. Something about this situation wasn't right. So now she knew who had locked Luis away and more importantly, why.

"Perhaps he thought he was doing the world a favour," she muttered, wanting to break the silence and still come off as the victor of this war of words. Draco pursed his lips and crossed his arms before asking in a sweet voice, as if he were speaking to a child.

"You really aren't that dense to believe we Malfoys are the only people he would and will kill?" 

Hermione shuffled her feet and gazed down at the ground, as if it held all the answers to the universe and if she kept looking, she would some how get them all. She knew what he was implying and knew what he was trying to do. Somehow he was guilting her into believeing she was responsible for Madame Rosmerta's death. She shook the thought from her head and glanced back at the boy infront of her.

"Why do you want the journal back?"

Draco didn't reply. She repeated her question, louder this time and with more strength in her voice. He rolled his eyes, "I can damn well hear you Granger."

"Then why don't you 'damn well' answer me Malfoy?"

"Because last time I checked, Malfoy's weren't required to speak to Mudbloods, let alone answer their questions."

She huffed slightly and Draco inwardly rejoiced. He had the upper hand once again.

"I'll not just hand the journal over to you Malfoy unless I know why you want it. For all I know, you could use it to for god knows what."

"For what? Aiding and abetting the dark lord?" The boy asked sarcastically and she raised an eyebrow.

"Precisely."

"Come off it young Gryffindor, the last thing I have in mind right now is helping Voldemort get to power. Not before I've had my morning coffee, read the Daily Prophet and shoved my morning load of Dungbombs down Longbottom's trousers," Draco muttered airly as tapped his foot impatiently. 

"Then you'd better tell me why you want it now, otherwise I'm going back up to Gryffindor Tower and going to sleep."

He sighed deeply, in obvious frustration which stunned Hermione. Never before had he openly allowed her to see how annoyed he got with her, but this was most certainly a change. Whether it was for better or worse was another story. It was obvious that this was important to him, otherwise he wouldn't have taken the time of day to even speak to her. 

"Granger, the journal binded Luis away. I'd have thought it would be rather obvious, if anything, it should help with locking him away once more," He insisted, though she could sense that there was more to it. He had chosen his words carefully, but Hermione had seen the Professor's do this time and time again; whenever something slightly horrific had happened.

"And?" She asked.

"And what?"

"And what aren't you telling me?"

He narrowed his eyes and sized her up for a moment, "I'm not your friend Granger, I don't have to tell you all the little little details at will."

She snorted, "Perhaps not at will, but if you want to be living and breathing when Graduation comes around, I guess your best bet would be to play nice and let me in on this big secret you try to frivourlessly to hide."

"Fine!" he steamed, "But if I tell you, then you have to promise not to tell a soul about what I say."

She raised an eyebrow and he scowled.

"Why do I have an inkling that this has something to do with Voldemort?" 

Draco mimicked her sarcastically and she rolled her eyes. 

"Quit being such a toddler Malfoy and just tell me!" 

"Not until you promise not to tell anyone," he ordered and she scowled. It would go on forever at this rate, so sighing almost defeatedly, she nodded, "Fine, I promise I won't tell another living soul."

"Granger! I know what you're trying to do, so stop it! Now say the exact words or you're not going to get anything out of me!" He hissed loudly and Hermione cursed him under her breath. 

"OK, I promise not to tell anyone."

"Now that's a good girl," he muttered, like she was a small child who had just done something rather pleasing.

"Shut it Malfoy and tell me, why do you really want the journal?"

"If I can get that journal and am able to find someway of sending it to my father, then hopefully he should be able to bind Luis for us."

"That's all?" she asked, almost laughing at the fact that it was nothing of a secret.

"NO THAT IS NOT ALL!" Draco practically shouted as he saw the amused look on her face. She chastised him silently for raising his voice, knowing well enough that Madame Pince was prone to waking up at the slightest of noises. Many students had attempted to break into the library from time to time and most of them had come back complaining of the detentions they had received due to such a foolish act.

"So continue then!" she ordered, her voice hushed. 

"If my father does manage to bind Luis, it won't be as simple as some little spell or potion. It'll take a lot of dark magic and I doubt he'd be able to do it alone. Not only that, but if Voldemort discover's that one of his close deatheaters has a vampire of Luis' calibre out to kill him… it could get rather nasty. Vampires are creatures of darkness and their blood is mixed with that of their victims. Voldemort considers these kind of creatures to be the same as the people they feed off of. He considers them to have dirty and tainted blood."

Hermione nodded slowly, it was making sense in an odd and cynical way. So, Voldemort considered Luis to be a 'mudblood' in other words. Of course, this 'mudblood' had enormous strength, sharp teeth and a rather large thirst for all things red and tangy. And Draco had kept this all a secret, why? Because he was protecting his father. His father's weakness, his father's vulnerability and his father's likeliness to be blasted to smitherins if caught.

"You said your father can't do it alone," she stated and he nodded slightly, his silver blonde locks falling in front of his eyes for a moment before he brushed them aside absentmindedly. He seemed to be in a deep rivine of thought.

"We may have to help him with the process. I don't know what it contains, but I remember that the journal will be an integral part to locking him away once more."

"And if I don't wish to help?" she shot at him but he merely shook his head.

"It's not like you really have a choice. You've let a monster out into the world, so now he consider's himself in a candy store and everyone he see's are all just chocolate frogs for the taking. Either you help stop him or their blood is on your hands."

Hermione was silent. She said not a word and appreciated for a moment that Malfoy was not looking at her with that custom smirk of his. Then she realised why he wasn't. He had stated the harsh reality of it all. She had done this, she had let Luis kill again. She felt a large lump form in her throat, but she swallowed it.

"Does your father know what's happening?" she asked, changing the subject abruptly.

"I've owled him, I should have a reply soon. He's not the kind of man who keeps people waiting," and with that Draco turned on his heel and headed back towards the doors of The Restricted Section.

"Carry the journal with you tomorrow and don't let it out of your sight," He called over his shoulder, "Once I have a reply from my father I'll let you know what's happening."

And then he was gone. Hermione sighed deeply and returned the book to it's proper shelf. It had been a long night. A very, very long night. 

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~ENDCHAPTER6~

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A/N- Chapter six, longer and completed with much more energy and effort put into it. I hope you've all enjoyed readingand please feel free to let me know what you think about it in a review. A special thanks goes out to The Marauders (once more for your incentive), Adel, AndinaofRivendell, Athene Saile, Fire-And-Ice1314 and one reviewer whose been around from the beginning and who I owe a lot of my dedication to, wildchartermage.


	7. Chapter Seven: Time After Time

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Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. He belongs to JK Rowling, Warner Bros. Bloomsbury Books and many other franchises. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended. 

Authors Note: **Athene Saile**, you're one hundred percent correct! The line from the previous chapter ('What harm could come from reading a book?') is taken from the movie, The Mummy. Well spotted :)

The beginning of this chapter takes off after Luis was saved from the Train at Hogsmeade station. Of course, he being a 16th century vampire could never so much as imagine what a train could be. This chapter will finally reveal Luis' intentions for Hermione and Lucius' reply. 

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Dark Souls

Written By Bellatrix Black

Chapter 7: Time after Time

"What brings me back to you Luis?" Alexandra asked, eyeing Luis coyly and smiling her sweetest of smiles. "Is that even a question my dear?"

He watched her carefully, his arms hanging lazily by his side as she surveyed him smugly.

"It's a very simple question."

She raised an eyebrow and reached over, grabbing a handful of his shirt and tugging him towards her, placing a soft lingering kiss on his cold lips. He didn't push her away, nor did he kiss back before she pulled away and observed his expression of pure shock. 

"Aren't you happy to see me?" she asked sweetly, her innocent face alight with insincere delight. "After all, I did just save your life. What on earth did you think you were doing standing on the train tracks?"

"Train tracks?" he questioned softly, glancing down at the 'rune' that lay on the ground below the platform. Alexandra pursed her lips curiously.

"I do not like being out in the open here Luis, where can we go to talk privately?" She insisted, changing the subject.

"There is a place I can deem is safe," He answered, plucking some much-needed confidence up from within him and without a second glance at her, he strode back down the path that led into Hogsmeade. Alexandra was of course slightly soured by his discourteous manner, but ignored it and lingered by his side silently. 

Luis couldn't help but glance at the woman next to him and take in her atmosphere of pure unearthliness. At first glance, Alexandra looked the pure image of an angel. Her face did not betray the secrets of her past or the vindictiveness that stirred within her soul. But he knew. Oh yes, he knew well enough. And now having her here, by his side once more silently whispering the forgotten secrets from their past together, he couldn't help but feel less content. 

He had crumbled once, because he had given her up. Because she had made him so strong, but refused to let him stand on his own. And now she had returned and within seconds, he could feel the same magic that had once existed between them both stirring inside of him. Her image had not altered at all in his mind and a whole rush of memories began to bombard him. 

Luis shook his head, removing the thousands of questions that plagued him and instead concentrated on making his legs move without stumbling. His encounter with the 'train' had been a shock to his system and his nerves were only now calming themselves. After a few minutes, they arrived outside the Shrieking Shack and in the darkness, he pulled one of the doors open and gestured her in. 

"Well… you certainly have quite a place here," she purred sarcastically. He shot her a dismissive look as he took off his coat, hanging it on the rack next to the door and gesturing for hers. She complied and then seated herself on one of the dusty couches in front of the barren fireplace. Luis sat opposite of her, his arms folded in an observant manner and a curious expression lingered on his features.

There was an unbroken silence between them both as they merely store back and forth between one another. And then, just as Alexandra felt she could take no more, Luis spoke.

"Why are you here?"

Surprised, Alexandra sat up in her seat before beginning to trace with her finger, the faded pattern on the armrest next to her.

"I could feel you had returned," she purred. 

He cocked his head to its side, "Feel? Alexandra, that word is not in your vocabulary."

Alexandra chortled, "I see you've not lost your sense of humour."

"Why are you here?" he repeated. "The last time I saw you, you were wishing death upon my very head."

The corner of her lips curled into a small smile as the silently reminisced to herself.

"Though do not worry my beloved, Cassius did find a much better punishment for myself," he continued.

"Or so I've heard," Alexandra muttered, smoothing out the creases in her skirt absentmindedly. Her eyes glanced up to his and to her delight, they were observing her keenly. She raised her chin and surveyed him for a moment. His chiseled features, his strong arms, his hallowed eyes… the same old Luis…

"Luis, please do not tell me that all these years have not passed and you've still not forgiven me," she insisted and her shot her a dark look. 

"Forgiven you? For what? Have I forgiven you for turning your back on me? For allowing me the deepest and darkest of tortures?" he growled softly and she shook her head, her dark eyes losing their strong and valiant demeanor a spark of remorse shimmering deeply within those pools. And as soon as it had appeared, the gleam in her eyes evaporated and a dark and sour look plastered itself over her face. 

"You speak as though you are sinless, as if you yourself have not committed the crimes you have never dared to speak of."

Alexandra's soft voice had disappeared and in its place was a dark, deep and venomous replacement. "You're forgetting who left who to begin with, my dark prince. You're forgetting who took the first step and walked away!"

"At least I didn't condemn you to a box of stone for centuries on end!" Luis shot at her, his gray eyes wide with fury and his arms pulsing with the urge to take all his anger out on the woman in front of him. "At least I did not allow you to be thrown away, to live with your hunger as the world around you changed. As the world around you grew and flourished into what it is now. So that all you could think about, all you could feel was the hunger, the thirst!"

"I did not choose your fate, Luis!" 

Alexandra stood up, towering over the man who sat in front of her. He drew up quickly, trying to restrain the urge to take out all his fury on her. To make her pay for the years he had lost and to make her realize just how much he was hurting – yes hurting – to have been locked away. 

And then she reached over, her fingers cupping his chin and the anger, which stirred within Luis disapparated. The glimmer in her eyes expressed her dark and sensual side, which soothed him nonetheless. The memories… oh the memories all came back to him now and he knew this was just one of her tricks. One of her ways to make him calm down to adhere to whatever she wanted. 

She leant over and once again that night kissed him softly and slowly. This time, Luis could not resist and he leant into her, letting his hands travel down to her hips and tasting the pleasures her mouth had to offer. 

And then it happened. A sharp pain shot through his head, making him cry out hoarsely and pull away from Alexandra. His eyes screwed up tightly as the images in front of him became clear. They lasted but a few seconds but he was sure of what he saw. He held the palm of his hand to the side of his head, as if to calm himself and ease off the shooting pain.

"Hermione…" he purred softly, silently relishing and cursing the images that had suddenly come to him.

Breathing deeply, which was a quality age-old vampires rarely did -- as vampires did not need to breathe – he gripped the armrest of the chair behind him and flopped himself down in a very non-Malfoy way. 

"Luis," Alexandra barked. "What's happening to you?"

He took another moment to steady himself before cracking one eye open and looking at the woman before him. The images he had seen, they had been so real, so as if Hermione had been right in front of him. In those split seconds he could practically smell her scent and feel her soft skin as she stood just out of arms reach. She had been crawling back into the covers of her bed. She was going to sleep. And why had these images come to him all of a sudden? Usually he had to will himself to see the young girl at all… but now.

And then Alexandra's poisonous eyes told him what he needed to know. 

"Leave," he said plainly, his hand dropping to his side as he turned himself to face her.

"Leave?" She almost laughed, "Why should I 'leave' Luis?" 

Her voice was almost challenging and his eyes narrowed to slits as he stood up.

"Because I'm done with you," he muttered, turning his back to her and making his way to the dusty and cobwebbed bar across the room. Alexandra's eyes widened and she rushed in front of him and placed her hands on her hips. 

"What do you mean you're done with me Luis? You don't so much as know why I'm here!"

"Oh, but I do!" he roared. "I know now why you're here! Why you traveled here from god knows where and god knows whose bed! Did you really think the journal's curses would just plague me whilst I rotted in that tomb? No, they dwell with me and the gifts you supplied to the journal refuse to leave me as well! I know what you want from me Alexandra! I know what you believe I should be and I shall make true on my leave to you!"

And then Alexandra gasped in disbelief, a hand drifted over her mouth as she store at him peculiarly.

"Foresight? You have the gift of foresight?"

She had obviously been ignoring everything else he had said. Her eyes showed no mercy, but her expression spoke of regret.

"Yes and no," he began darkly. "I cannot see things whenever I wish to, but only when I need to. My body knows and shows me when something is right or wrong with myself… or with Hermione."

"Hermione?" Alexandra's voice shot bitterly. "Who is this 'Hermione'?"

And in true Malfoy fashion, Luis smirked broadly. "She is the one who had allowed me to once again become a part of this world."

"She unlocked the journal?" she asked, her voice rasping slightly. 

"Yes my Alexandra, she was the one who set me free. A complete stranger, a mortal, rather than my lover and sire."

Under normal circumstances – if there could ever possibly be normal circumstances – these words would have stung Alexandra on the outside. But instead she scowled, raised her right hand and left a stinging slap on Luis' cheek. He took no notice of it, merely chuckling and gripping a hold of her wrist.

"Don't you speak to me like that you fool!" she demanded hotly, but his haunting laugh which she had seldom heard chilled her to the bone, holding up any words she could have said further. 

"I'm done with you Alexandra. Now I know why you refused to ever let me turn another. You didn't want me to find someone else; you didn't want to be alone. You didn't want me feel for anyone but yourself, you selfish brat!" 

And with that, his firm grip on her wrists loosened until it was no more and he strode over to the door of the shack and threw it open, "Get out and leave me be Alexandra, I no longer _need_ you!"

And Alexandra pursed her lips, her eyes narrowed darkly as she gracefully retrieved her coat and stood at the doorway. 

"Tell me Luis, what do you intend to do? Let this 'Hermione' become the beacon of your life? She is a mortal; she could never want something as dark and filthy as you are. And if she is but the saint you seem to compare me to, then do you really think you could ever turn her? That she could ever be happy living as something as vile and inhumane as we?" She spat her conniving words at him and his expression faltered for less than a second. But she knew this man. She knew what he was and how his brain worked.

And then suddenly, something that Alexandra had not expected him to do happened. Luis smiled. And not just smiled, but 'grinned' so to speak.

"This girl is smart and strong. But I can feel fear within her soul. She doesn't want to die and I do not wish to see her in a century's time, old and worn through the ages. Thank you Alexandra, I've been wondering for sometime now how to repay this girl and I think I know now that there is no better gift I could present to her, than the gift of immortality."

His cold words and hard demeanor stunned Alexandra, but she did not have much time to view them. He grabbed a handful of her hair, planted a searing final kiss on her lips before shoving her out the door and slamming it shut behind her. Luis was sure he heard a loud and very unladylike grunt come from behind the wooden door before he turned and sunk down on one of the couches. 

The house was silent now and all he could hear were the flapping of the broken shutters in the wind. He retrieved the wand from his pocket and glanced at it for a moment, before pointing it towards the fireplace.

"Incendio," Luis said softly and a small fire rose in front of him, heating up the house which was filled which had snatches of the autumn breeze outside seep in through it's many nicks and cranny's. So, he hadn't lost his magical side after all. He twirled the wand in his fingers in front of him for a moment, before placing it on a nearby card table. 

He sat in the silence for a few minutes, letting the scarlet embers from the fireplace bathe himself and the room in it's rosy color before he felt the hunger stir deep within him. He still had not fed. Dawn was still but hours away and so, lazily he stood up and hurried out of the backdoor. He retreated in the opposite direction of Hogsmeade, telling himself to trust his instincts and not feed from the same place twice. 

****

~*~*~*~

__

"Hermione," the familiar voice called silkily. Hermione stood up wearily, abandoning and ignoring Harry and Ron's querying expressions as she followed the sweet voice. They had been sitting by the lake enjoying a picnic. The autumn leaves and the beautiful Saturday afternoon had made her feel so safe and relaxed. 

"Hermione," the voice beckoned again.

"I'm coming," she said softly, as she headed back towards the castle. It was suddenly so quiet now and she glanced over her shoulder at the people who were behind her. They all seemed to not have noticed the change. Some Hufflepuff first years were gossiping together under a tree and some Ravenclaw and Gryffindor third years were having a friendly game of Quidditch at the pitch. 

She came up to the steps of the Entrance Hall, and looked forward, trying to make out just whom the figure in the shadows was. Their hooded face and body were unseen and all she could grasp were the eyes. Cold, gray eyes. She looked back over her shoulder, registering no change with the people around her before the figure in front of her began walking down the steps of the Great Hall.

And then someone was standing next to her. His eyes too, were gray and his face was expressionless. It was Draco. He gestured forwards at the man in the hood in front of them.

"You have to know what to see," Draco said softly, as the cloaked figure pulled back his hood and stood in the sunlight.

"Luis," her voice murmured and he smiled, reaching out a hand towards her. She took a step back, her body suddenly freezing in fright and then he drew back his hand, Luis' face preaching of hurt. He suddenly looked towards the sky. More specifically the sun and Hermione gasped as the tall, silver haired man in front of her began to burn.

"Run! Run back to the shadows!" She shrieked, but he ignored her as his hands, arms and torso became lit up. And suddenly, he was no more. His body turned to ash and disappeared as the day turned cold and the skies darkened. Hermione shivered and hugged her arms around herself tightly, trying to keep warm.

She turned towards Draco, but he merely looked towards the castle steps, then back at Hermione, a grim expression on his face. 

"Do you see what you've done?" he asked stiffly.

"I didn't do that," said Hermione, fighting to keep her voice strong. Hermione shuddered and then something suprising happened. Silently, Draco reached up and cradled her chin in his hand. Hermione didn't know why she let him, but she stood staring at him in surprise. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"You have to know what to believe," Draco said almost soothingly. 

Hermione's eyes flickered open and she lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling for a few good, long minutes. It had been a dream. A weird dream, that was for certain, but a dream nonetheless. She could hear soft voices in the room and she sat up. Parvati was sitting on the end of Lavender's bed, brushing her hair. Hermione simply blinked at the two girls, before glancing over at the clock. It was 7:08am. 

"Good morning Hermione," Parvati called softly across the room and Hermione smiled slightly. 

"Good morning" came the reply and a small nod went to Lavender. "Good morning Lavender."

Hermione pulled herself out of bed and dragged herself into the bathroom. She had a quick shower and brushed her teeth before she came back into her dorm to pack her bag. So today was starting out pretty normal, she mused to herself. It was definitely an unexpected feat considering her more recent mornings. But grateful for the feeling of normality, she turned back to her schedule.  
  
A few minutes later, the young brunette came merrily down the stairs from the girl's dorms to find both Ron and Harry waiting for her in the common room. A chorus' of greetings broke out between the trio as they headed off to breakfast.

"We have Transfiguration first thing this morning," said Hermione, which only made Ron turn a slight shade of green. Unfortunately, this didn't go unnoticed.

"What's wrong Ron?" 

"Umm…well…" he began as she observed him with pincer eyes, "can I borrow your notes from the last class?"

"You didn't do the assignment!?" Hermione roared loudly and her almost cowered under her gaze. 

"No, I did do the assignment!" Ron started and she breathed a sigh of relief, "But…"

"But what?"

"Well I did do it, I just didn't _finish_ it," Ron insisted and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh give him a break Hermione," Harry said pleadingly as both boys switched on the puppy dog eyes. Hermione sighed as they arrived at the Great Hall. She began rummaging through her bag until she managed to retrieve her notes and tossed them in front of Ron as they took their seats at the table. 

'Thank you,' Harry mouthed and Hermione half smiled, half grunted. 

"So, tonight. Anyone up for another round of butterbeers, gobstones and perhaps some Exploding Snap?" Harry asked as he began pouring warm milk on his cornflakes. 

"Count me in!" Ron insisted as he began gulping down a large mouthful of porridge.

"Oh, me to too I guess," Hermione murmured as she glanced over at the Slytherin table. Draco was sitting in between Crabbe and Goyle, muttering things to them occasionally as he picked at a slice of toast boredly. Hermione could hear Harry asking Ron something about the Quidditch Pitch and she merely nodded along absentmindedly to whatever they were saying. 

A bubble of anxiety began to form in Hermione's chest. Where was the post? Didn't it usually come around now? Why wasn't it here now? She nibbled absentmindedly on an apple slice, glancing at the high windows every now and again before finally, a large troupe of owls flew into the Hall. She sighed deeply for a moment before she paid the small owl, which brought her the Daily Prophet and glanced back over at Draco. 

His large eagle owl had arrived carrying a box of what Hermione and the others had deducted to be Draco's sweets. He most commonly shared the lot with his inner circle. She watched and waited until all the owls had swooped back out of the large windows, but no others came to the young Slytherin.

Draco glanced over at Hermione for a moment, but then returned to conversing with his lunks. Hermione wasn't sure whether to be relieved or worried. There was no owl from Lucius Malfoy. Clearing her thoughts, Hermione returned to her meal. She was a normal girl. She was at school, eating breakfast with her friends. She did not need to worry about a vampire during daylight. And she did not need to worry about the whereabouts of a convicted deatheater who was supposed to get rid of the vampire. 

"Here you go Hermione," Ron said as laid her notes down in front of her. 

"All done?" 

"Yep."

"We may as well get to class early," Harry murmured, standing up from the table and slinging his bag over his shoulder. 

"Class? Already?" Hermione glanced down at her watch. Time had flown so quickly. 

Ron and Hermione gathered their books and made their way out of the hall. Among the throngs of other students, Hermione had the same familiar feeling of eyes on her back. She glanced over her shoulder, Draco was still sitting in his seat, from the looks of it he had been going through his bag and had sent Crabbe and Goyle on without him. But he placed the bag on the seat next to him and sat there silently. 

Taking it as some kind of sign, Hermione walked down another two corridors before insisting that she'd left a notebook back at the Gryffindor table. 

"I'll only be a minute," she announced as she turned her back to them and scurried back to the Great Hall. Peeking inside, she found that many of the other students were still inside, enjoying a late breakfast. One of which, was not Draco. Silently cursing herself for being 'too paranoid', Hermione turned around and came face to face with the silver haired boy.

They stood there, silent for a moment, before he pointed towards one of the empty passageways, which led to the lavatories. There were no classrooms down the other side of the corridor, so they'd be almost guaranteed some privacy. The moment they were out of earshot and sight, Draco turned to her and observed her stiffly.

"I'm guessing if I ask for the journal, you'll just say no."

She pursed her lips, "Clever little ferret, aren't you?"

"Granger, look. I know this probably is the most improper of times, places and yes, even people but right now, I think we need to call some kind of a truce between us both," He muttered hurriedly as he glanced down the corridor to make sure no-one could hear them. Hermione blinked, Draco still had his custom smirk plastered all over his face but she could almost see the slightest glimmer of worry pass over him.

"What's happened?" She asked, her throat going dry all of a sudden. Maybe he had bad news, maybe someone else had died. She hadn't even bothered to read through the Daily Prophet yet. Draco hesitated for a moment, before he reached into his robes pocket and drew out a small envelope. The seal had already been broken and her handed it to Hermione as he leant against the wall boredly. She didn't bother to question him and instead, pulled out the letter and began to read.

__

Find out where Luis is. If he's still near Hogwarts or Hogsmeade, go back to the Manor. If he's near the manor, stay at school. Do not tell anyone about him, **not even Snape**. If you are able to get the journal off of the mudblood, then I don't know what good it will do unless I can get my hands on it and Hogwarts is not the most inviting of places for me right now. Large packages can be intercepted too easily and we may never get it back then. 

Research. Owl your mother and have her send over some of the books in my private collection, they may help us in the future. Be careful and keep your eyes open. Contact me in the future if there are any new developments. Do not owl me unless it is of dire need.

Sincerely,

I needn't say.

Hermione handed the letter back to Draco, who promptly lit his wand and burnt it to a crisp. She didn't bother to ask, after last night's encounter she was certain that his paranoia concerning his father was not just a spur of the moment feeling. 

"I'll be owling my mother during lunch, this letter only arrived this morning."

"When? I didn't see an owl at breakfast," Hermione muttered absentmindedly. He sneered and his lips curled.

"Have you been watching me Granger?"

Hermione's cheeks flushed for a mere second before she glared. "I was watching the post, believe me, you're no masterpiece to gaze at."

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, "Temper temper Granger. Let's not lose our cool."

She continued to glare and they stood there, both of them unsure of what to say really. Finally, after a minute or so Hermione sighed.

"Look, this is ridiculous."

"Exactly, which was why I suggested a truce but mere minutes ago."

"Fine then, a truce. But only between ourselves, and only when it's important. I'm not your friend Malfoy and I've no intention of conforming to some lovable sap after all the years I've had to endure your countless taunts."

"I couldn't ask, nor would I want any more than that," Malfoy muttered as he raised his chin. "And I'll not be shaking your hand, if that's what you're thinking."

Hermione nodded, "So what now?"

"Now," Draco started. "We go back down this corridor and head towards our respective classes. When the time comes, I'll give you some sign that I have more news and we'll go from there."

Draco got up from the wall and turned back down the hallway. Hermione hesitated for a second, but decided she could not wait any longer.

"Malfoy," she started and the boy stopped walking and turned around slowly. His lips were pursed in an annoyed and clipped manner.

"What?"

"'You have to know what to believe,'" Hermione said softly, nervously recollecting her dream earlier on in the morning. "What does that mean?"

A thoughtful look passed over Draco's face for a moment, before her glanced back at the young Gryffindor.

"I've no idea what it means. Why?" 

She shook her head. "It's nothing important really," Hermione mumbled as she gripped her bag tighter and hurriedly strode past the bewildered silver haired boy. He considered stopping her and asking what she had meant by it, but his better judgment told him not to push onward.

****

~ENDCHAPTER7~

Authors Note: I certainly hope you've all liked this chapter as it did take me a rather long time to write. Almost five hours, including a few breaks. So now we have a clear picture on Luis' motives, his feelings concerning Alexandra and of course, further fodder for coming chapters. Now I've decided to speed up the romance and plot happenings of this story as it obviously took six chapters to get Draco and Hermione to have so much of a decent conversation together. I'll try to make the chapters longer and to fasten up the romances etc.

But don't think things are going to be so simple. I love to complicate things. And just a little spoiler for people, I'm going to take this story to more places than Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, so just be patient as I do need time to write each chapter. There's a lot going to happen. 

Let's not forget, Harry, Ron and Voldemort still don't know about Luis. Alexandra is a very spiteful person (or shall be) and we've not seen the last of her. Lucius wants to get rid of Luis just as bad as Draco and Hermione. There is research to be done. I've planned around twenty-five chapters, but I may shorten the amount if I get the initiative to add some together.

Anyway, feel free to review me, as I'll love you forever if you do as it's reviews that keep me alive and give me the ability to continue sometimes. I'm currently working on a joint project with my good friend Sarah, under the account name Blue-And-Silver. Feel free to go check it out :p (It's a James/Lily/Severus ficcie). I'm also working on a few stories, but I need to iron out some of the plots and really want to finish Dark Souls before I start on another one. 

I'm planning quite a few chapters for this fic, but if I can manage to make chapters as long as this one then perhaps it might just be around twenty chapters long. One can hope at least. Anyway, until next time :p


	8. Chapter Eight: Humble Beginnings

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. This is merely fanfiction, please don't sue. JK Rowling and Warner Bros. own all.  
  
A/N- This is the first chapter to happen after my extensive planning regime. One of the few which will lead to the exciting leaving Hogwarts bit. Stay tuned, enjoy, review and all that jazz.  
  
_This chapter is dedicated to Rose AquaFire, for your diligent reviewing which always brings a smile to my face._  
  


**Dark Souls  
By Bellatrix Black**

  
  
_Chapter Eight: Humble Beginnings_  
  
The day passed by for Hermione and night soon came to rest upon her. Draco had said he'd owl his mother at lunch, so it was not suprising that she'd not replied as of yet. As Hermione settled down that night, she couldn't help but worry slightly over Luis and his whereabouts. Lucius' letter had worried her slightly; his warnings had been rather straight forward, which was understandable.   
  
She had read through the Daily Prophet after classes were done, but there had been no more news of another death. Nonetheless, Hermione laid her head down on her pillow and no sooner had she done so, than she fell into a deep dreamless sleep.   
  
Unfortunately, her waking the next morning was not pleasant. Parvati had invited a group of fourth years into their dorm and as the giggly troupe all conversed over hair spells and products, Hermione groaned and prepared herself for class. So life was turning back to normal. In but two days, it was a miracle. Perhaps she had been over reacting over the whole ordeal.   
  
Hermione smiled slightly at the group as she passed them all and headed down to breakfast. Ron and Harry were already there, debating with Neville over the newest assignment Professor Lupin had given to them in Defense Against The Dark Arts. Apparently they were all a bit confused about something or other. But Hermione merely shrugged as she buttered her toast.   
  
Glancing over at the Slytherin table, she saw Draco was deeply immersed in a tight-lipped conversation with Blaise Zabini, whilst Pansy watched them both with daggers in her eyes. It was common knowledge that Pansy had been dating Draco, in fact it was rather hard to now know as she practically proclaimed it to everyone she met.   
  
But rumors had been surfacing about Blaise's advances towards Draco and now Pansy watched her boyfriend and the feisty raven-haired girl whispered back and forth between each other.  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes and began eating her breakfast, chiming in with Harry, Neville and Ron's conversation whenever she had the opportunity. The mail soon came and Hermione eyed the Slytherin table suspiciously, but Draco received nothing but another small box of sweets. Hermione promptly paid for her copy of the Daily Prophet, before she looked down and noticed the small plain white envelope next to her plate.  
  
She quietly opened the envelope and read the letter to herself.  
  
_Granger,  
The books have arrived and are waiting for us in one of the potion dungeons. Meet me outside Snape's dungeon at nine tonight. Do not be late as I'm not one to be kept waiting.  
  
_ Hermione blinked at the brief note. Well, Draco certainly wasn't one to mix words.  
  


**~*~*~*~**

  
  
"You're late," Draco mumbled as he unfolded his arms. Hermione glared at him as she struggled to catch her breath. Escaping from the common room was not as easy as she had expected. Harry and Ron had insisted on another night of Gobstones and Exploding Snap and it had almost broken Hermione's heart to turn them down. Eventually, she had come up with some excuse that she had wanted to get one last book out of the library and if she hurried now, she just might be able to before Madame Pince locked up.  
  
By then of course, it was almost nine and eluding Filch, Mrs. Norris and other Professors who were on patrol was no easy charm. But alas, she had managed to arrive without being caught and as she stood their in the dark hallway, it's only light coming from both their wands, she couldn't help but feel a bit more animosity curl up inside of herself towards the silver haired devil.  
  
"Why Malfoy, it's nice to see you too," she muttered sarcastically as he began walking down the hallway and came to stop at one of the empty storage rooms.   
  
"Alohomora," he muttered at the lock and he swung the door open.  
  
OK, perhaps the room wasn't empty per-say. Infront of them both stood two crates of old and worn out books. Against one wall were stacks of stools, piled on top of each other and a barren desk sat in the corner. Hermione ran a finger down the spines of some of the books, reading off some of the names in unison.   
  
"Dark creatures… The Malfoy Family Legacy… Malfoy History…"  
  
"Impressive, aren't they?"  
  
Hermione chortled. "Actually, I was just thinking about how self righteous your ancestors were."  
  
Draco scowled and reached into the crate, extracting one of the heftier volumes. "There's nothing wrong with sustaining ones family history, though I guess you would know nothing about that."  
  
"Oh please Malfoy. Believe it or not, muggles do the same thing. The only catch is that the ones who do are usually part of the royal family."  
  
"My family are royalty in their own status," Draco scoffed.  
  
"Your family are pureblooded fanatics who despise change," Hermione muttered and Draco shot her a dark look.   
  
"Whatever happened to the so-called truce we developed yesterday Granger? The last time I checked, we'd not revoked it."  
  
Hermione thought for a moment, before she merely shrugged and dusted off one of the stools, which had been neatly placed in the corner. Sitting down, she opened up a large green omnibus bearing the title, 'Malfoy's Through the Ages: The Aged and Forgotten'. She could have sworn she had heard Draco grunt with annoyance, but he merely sat himself down on his own stool and began reading his own thick book.   
  
The minutes ticked by slowly and the silence between the Gryffindor and Slytherin became deadening. Hermione shifted in her seat, tugging her robes around her tighter as she felt a slight draft enter the eerie dungeon. She noticed Draco glancing at her from above his book and he silently stood up and lit a small fire in the fireplace.   
  
"Thanks," mumbled Hermione as she took her seat.  
  
"I didn't do it for you Granger. This room was rather cold to begin with."  
  
Hermione bit her lip and slammed her book shut, making Draco jump slightly, before he straightened his robes in a somewhat dignified manner. She took great pleasure at the look of embarrassment on his face as she withdrew a different book from the crate. Minutes ticked by and silence prevailed between the two as they skimmed each book for any sign of something concerning Luis.  
  
"This is pointless," Hermione huffed loudly as she returned a rather thin and worn looking copy of 'Malfoy lineage' to it's respective crate.  
  
"If you have a better idea, I'd like to hear it," Draco growled and she folded her arms, pursing her lips.   
  
"Malfoy, from what I've read in Luis' journal, your family weren't exactly pleased with him. I very much doubt that they'd want to immortalize him in a book among their 'most cunning and ambitious' if they locked him away, never to be heard of again."  
  
Draco considered this for a moment. She was right. It was obvious that his forefathers had wanted Luis forgotten, so that the shame of the family name would not become part of their history. Of course, he could never admit this to the Gryffindor in front of him.  
  
"Fine, if that's what you think, then search through the dark creatures text's to see if there's anything in them concerning the binding. Or…"  
  
"Or what Malfoy?"  
  
"Or, you can go through the journal and see whether Luis himself mentioned it."  
  
Hermione mumbled something under her breath which Draco couldn't hear and retrieved one of the dark creatures volumes from the crate. She shot him a determined look and stuck her nose inside the book. He didn't seem to notice though, he was more distracted by the journal which was slightly visible, poking it's spine out from one of Hermione's robe's pockets.   
  
'So,' Draco mused to himself. 'She carries it with her.'  
  


**~*~*~*~**

  
  
She was walking silently through a large street. It was night and the buildings surrounding her were all lit up with small candles from within. Hermione took no real notice though as she was heading somewhere. She just wasn't very sure of where that place was. Her feet led her past some highly risen buildings, bearing the names The Quibber and Wally's Printing Press and Magical Stuffed Animals.  
  
The night was cold and she shivered slightly, wrapping her black cloak around her tighter before she finally turned the last corner and arrived in a dark, desolate alley.  
  
'This isn't right,' she told herself. Hermione turned, as if to go back before she caught in the corner of her eyes, something moving ahead of her. Her curious nature set in and she slowly edged towards the moving figure. Or to be more precise, moving figures. It was two people and for a moment Hermione feared that she'd walked in on two people in a rather … intimate session, before she caught the look of terror on the woman's face.  
  
Hermione froze and the man drew back from the woman's neck, letting her limp body drop to the ground. He turned around and leant against the stone wall; delicately wiping his mouth and jaw with a small white handkerchief, taking no notice of her at all. It was as if he could see right through her. The man took out a cigarette and with the light of one mere match, Hermione could see his face.  
  
'Luis,' she breathed.  
  
And then his eyes locked on hers and a small devilish smile tugged at the corner of his lips. He blew out the match and tossed the cigarette aside. He took step towards her and Hermione's knees almost buckled.   
  
"Stay back," she said, silently glad for the strength her voice held this time.  
  
"I don't want to hurt you, Hermione."  
  
He took another step towards her.  
  
"Then stay away from me."  
  
A look of surprise passed over Luis' face, which Hermione could not see in the darkness. But then he scowled and crossed his arms.   
  
"You sound so sure of yourself," his soft voice muttered.  
  
"I am."  
  
"You lie."  
  
Hermione bit her lip as Luis slowly walked closer to her. Some part of her willed to run but the other part seemed mesmerized into staying there and finding out why exactly she was here. But wait a minute…  
  
"Where am I?" Hermione asked all of a sudden and Luis smirked.   
  
"You're in a dream my dear. Isn't it obvious?"  
  
Hermione glanced back over her shoulder, at the buildings around her and the side of the office building, whose sign blared 'The Quibbler'.   
  
"If this is a dream, then why am I here of all places?"  
  
Luis now stood but two steps in front of her. He could feel her warm breath pelt softly against his own body as she looked around, her body no longer nervous but more confused than anything.   
  
"Because you are where I am," he answered, gesturing to a large sign not too far off in the distance. Abbotsville. Hermione knew of Abbotsville and she knew of the Quibbler building. She and Ginny had both paid Luna a visit at her father's enterprise days after they had returned from their vacation. The thing that resounded the most to Hermione was that Abbotsville was but a stone's throw away from Hogsmeade.  
  
"Is this place real?" she questioned mournfully and Luis nodded.  
  
"You are where I am. I am not asleep, goodness knows that I cannot sleep day and night. Not when I need to feed."  
  
Hermione shuddered as she glanced over at the limp body of the woman lying on the ground across from her. The cold night's breeze flayed autumn leaves against her and Hermione muffled and small groan. The woman was dead. No one would find her body until morning. And no one would ever have known just how rough and uneasy the night had been to her.  
  
"Why her?" Hermione insisted. "Why did you feed off of her?"  
  
"If I did not feed off of her, then it would eventually have been someone else. She was but the unlucky one I came across," Luis murmured, obviously noting the look of disgust on Hermione's face. "My hunger is but a curse. I cannot help it, I cannot fight it."  
  
"Would you ever give up your hunger? If there were a way?"  
  
"I am unsure, mon ami."  
  


**~*~*~*~**

  
  
  
  
Hermione returned to the old storage dungeon once again. For two weeks now, she and Malfoy had been scouring silently through the books inside the crates longing for some scrap of information pertaining to Luis. Unfortunately, all that had managed to surface were the comments of an insane uncle claiming that 'vampires had to be dealt with, we did once already'; which was not very helpful at all.   
  
Of course, Draco's mother Narcissa had adhered to their request for more books. Hermione couldn't help but wonder how they kept arriving, before she put two and two together and realized that Professor Snape had agreed to Narcissa's request that 'her Draco learns about his family.'  
  
"You weren't seen were you?"  
  
"It's my turn for prefect rounds this fortnight. For the next two weeks; I'll have an excuse if I get caught," she proclaimed as she seated herself down in front of the warm fireplace, which Draco always lit, before she arrived.   
  
"Right, Right," he nodded absentmindedly as he flicked through a copy of 'The Dark Creature Annals'. The two had become slightly more comfortable with each other, once the ice had been broken. To be more precise, after a rather nice argument had broken out between them both.  
  


_~Flashback~_

  
  
"I wonder why you've not told Wonderboy and the Weasel about your predicament Granger," Draco had shot one night after she had objected to him going through the Malfoy Family books once more.   
  
"That's none of your business."  
  
"Really? Well considering I'm going out of my way to help you get a blood thirsty murderer off of your back-"  
  
"Going out of your way? The only reason you're helping me is because you want to be around to see next Christmas."  
  
Draco sneered, ignoring her and plucking the copy of 'Vampire Traits' from her hands, he began reading through the index.  
  
'Give that back! I'm not done with it!" she had protested, but he had merely walked back across the room and sat down on his stool, flicking through the pages absentmindedly. And then suddenly, it happened. Draco felt something graze his ear and a loud thud followed soon after.   
  
"Bloody hell Granger, what the fuck do you think you're doing?" he hissed, before his eyes widened and he ducked quickly. A second book flew promptly over his head and thwacked into the stone wall behind him. Hermione was standing on the other side of the room; one of her hands was already reaching inside the crate to retrieve another book.   
  
Draco strode over and tugged the crate away from her, scowling. Hermione placed her crossed her arms, her face was burning and she could feel hot, burning tears welling up in her eyes. She blinked them away quickly as Draco returned to standing in front of her.   
  
"What the hell was that?" he fumed and she shot him a venomous look.  
  
"They're called books Malfoy," she said sweetly.  
  
"Well that's obvious, but you see Granger, people usually read books rather than throwing them."  
  
"You deserved it!"  
  
"How on earth did I deserve to almost be knocked unconscious by a copy of 'That Malfoy's Failures'?"  
  
"Because anyone whose as awful and cruel as you are deserves to be kept quiet than to speak so nastily to people!" she hissed as she pushed past him and headed for the door. Fortunately, Draco's years as a seeker had done him some justice and he managed to block her from exiting the room.   
  
"Lately Granger, I've been acting damned well pleasant to you-"  
  
"Pleasant? Is that what you call teasing me on every possible occasion that presents itself?" Hermione interrupted, her eyes narrowing to haunting little slits. She suddenly felt the same urge from third year to reach up and slap the young boy, but she kept it at bay. Just barely of course.  
  
Draco took a deep breath to steady himself, contemplating the situation at hand. If he were to move out of the door frame and let her leave the room, then not only would she win their short war of words, but she'd also take off and never let him so much as glance at Luis' journal. He glanced down at the face in front of him, which was pink with exhaustion and which was glaring at him with daggers in her eyes.  
  
"Tell me, what on earth did I say that was so damn well offensive?" he muttered, ignoring his brain's warning that he was straying down a very dangerous path. Hermione turned away from him, her arms still crossed. She was silent for a moment, trying to find the right words if any, to answer him.   
  
"The thing about Harry and Ron…." she muttered as she gathered her bag, which she had brought with her. Inside of it, it was packed full of notes and extracts she had made from Luis' journal. Realization dawned on the silver haired Slytherin as he watched Hermione hurriedly shove a few books inside. "I wouldn't expect you to understand Malfoy."  
  
"I do," he said plainly and Hermione's face darkened. Needless to say, the atmosphere around Draco was not the most pleasant. The last thing most people his age would want is to be in a dark dungeon, where half the room was a fireplace, with an intelligent Gryffindor who was in a very sour mood. OK, perhaps if one were to rid her of the sour mood, he might feel a bit more at ease.   
  
"Don't say you do just to appease me, I'm not stupid enough to believe you either way."  
  
Now it was Draco's turn to glare, "See! It doesn't matter what I say, it won't be worth anything to you, so I don't know why you even expected me to try in the first place!"  
  
"You issued the truce, not me!"  
  
"You agreed to it, you should have known that I'm a cynical bastard, haven't five years taught you anything?"   
  
"I thought you'd put aside the petty bickering just long enough for your god damned father to get rid of Luis! Obviously I was wrong."  
  
Hermione stormed back over to Draco.  
  
"Move!" she ordered, but he shook his head.  
  
"You know just as well as I do that you need myself and my father's help on this. It's not some little adventure you, Potter and Weasley used to go on. This is your problem; you awoke Luis, now you have to deal with the consequences. One of which is me."  
  
She sighed in exhaustion and threw her bag at Draco. He caught it and dropped it down next to him. Hermione had endured enough. Enough arguing, enough worrying, enough distance from her friends and enough nights of being scrutinized by the enemy. And in one mere moment she let it out. One solemn, lonely tear cascaded down her face and she prompted reached up to brush it off before Draco noticed.  
  
Unfortunately, she was a second too late and the boy caught sight of her smallest of weaknesses.   
  
'Wonderful,' her mind raged sarcastically. 'Could this night get any worse?"  
  
She waited for his next stinging comment to fly and his next expression of disgust to come, but instead he just stood there. His face was expressionless and apparently, he seemed unsure of what to do exactly. This only added to Hermione's embarrassment and she returned back to her seat, silently plucking up one of the books from the crates, opening it and sticking her nose into it.  
  
A minute later, she heard Draco's own stool squeak as he too returned to sitting down.  
  
"Perhaps we ought to have another try at that truce we were discussing," he mumbled as he began skimming the pages of a large black volume. Hermione nodded as she flicked through the book in front of her.  
  
"Perhaps."  
  


_~END FLASHBACK~_

  
  
Even now when Hermione reflected on the memory, she couldn't help but be slightly embarrassed. It had helped the atmosphere in the dungeons a bit more now and they rarely swiped at each other whilst they were in their humble privacy. In public though, they did enjoy letting loose all the comments they couldn't possibly have said whilst in their quaint little dungeons and Hermione was surprised with Draco's rather… err... extensive vocabulary.  
  
She felt a small smile tug at her lips as she flipped through some of the latest books Mrs. Malfoy had sent to them.  
  
"Tell me, did you find anything in those Vampire Chronicles?" Draco asked, looking up from his book.  
  
"Just the usual details I could have found in the library. Oh, and some rather nasty torture methods," she replied, a disgusted look on her face which almost made Draco smirk.   
  
"My forefathers didn't take very kindly to those who strayed from their blood rights, most probably those methods were ones they invented for any child of a pureblooded family who was turned, so far it would seem Luis is the only Malfoy vampire who ever existed."  
  
"Maybe. Or maybe he's the only one who left behind a scrap of evidence about himself."  
  
Draco shrugged, "Another of those endless possibilities."  
  
Hermione nodded slightly. Endless possibilities. That was the term they had given to the theories which usually led them around in circles. They had managed to find bits and pieces of evidence pointing towards Luis in some old memoirs. But other than that, they had found barely anything new. She had given Draco some of the notes from the journal, but even those just reflected on his treatment of his family.   
  
Draco had asked only once more to see the journal and once she had refused, she heard not another word about it. Perhaps the fact that he knew now that she would not just abandon the research and mission to rebind Luis had made him have a bit more confidence in her. She had lessened in her reading of the journal now as some part of her willed to not feel guilty for what she was attempting to do.  
  
The Luis in the journal had been so carefree and full of life -- even if that was the only asset that he did not possess.   
  
"Granger?" Draco suddenly called and Hermione looked up from her book. He was pacing in front of the fireplace, a serious look on his face. They weren't even on first name basis, but she knew his behavior well enough to know that he didn't just react whenever he thought he had found some small reference.  
  
"What is it Malfoy?" she asked, lowering her book from her face.  
  
"You haven't by chance seen a book called 'Darkness Broken', have you?"  
  
Hermione cocked her head to its side for a moment, before looking back up at the boy. "No, I don't believe I have. Why?"  
  
"I've been reading through the journals of some of my ancestors, the ones after Luis' time. Two of them, brothers Cassius and Julius to be precise, have both mentioned this book as one they went in search for to help 'bind a familiar evil'."  
  
"Well, didn't your family consider muggles and muggle-borns to be evil?"  
  
Draco shifted his shoulders. "True, but I don't think that's what they meant. Well, they considered them to be dirty. But apparently in that time, they didn't so much as glance at muggles at all. They even went to Durmstrang to avoid mudbloo-"  
  
"Muggle-borns," Hermione cut in shortly, giving him a dark look. He merely brushed it aside and continued skimming the lines of the page in front of him. "I see your point though."  
  
"Perhaps, we should check to see whether the Restricted Section has it?" Draco asked suddenly and Hermione raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Breaking into the restricted section? That sounds like a rather familiar plan."  
  
Draco rolled his eyes, "You had no idea what you were even looking for back then. Now we do."  
  
**~ENDCHAPTER8~**  
  
**Authors Note:** OK, well I must say this did take me some time to write. But I do think I've accomplished a lot in this chapter. I've outlined twenty-four chapters, which is how many I think it will take to complete this fic, though the chapters may reduce if I end up combining some of them together. Each chapter will now be 3000+ words, so I can get things done a lot quicker and professionally. I probably would have had this whole thing speedtrained if I had finalized the plot in the beginning, rather than trying to develop one as I went on. But now, I must say that there is going to be a lot of action, some more Harry and Ron, some Voldemort, some Dumbledore and some of the Malfoys. So just wait, I need to make the characters GROW so to speak. Please review, I'll love you if you do :p (Constructive Criticism Please.) 


	9. Chapter Nine: The Maura Curse

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. He and everything attributed to him, belong to JK Rowling, Warmer Bros and many other franchises. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended. Sarafina was the name of Dante's sire in the book Twilight Hunger.

Authors Note: _Maura_ is a female Latin name for 'dark'. Or so I've heard. If I'm wrong, please let me know. The chant for the Maura charm is French and a rather rough translation at that. To put it plainly, it means:

__

Let the darkness show me, that which I wish to see. 

Let the darkness reveal to me, only which is real. 

Let the darkness show me, what it hides from me.

Anyway: **read**, _review_ and all that _jazz_.

****

Dark Souls

By Bellatrix Black

Chapter Nine: The Maura Curse

"Hush Granger," Draco muttered as he Alohomora'ed the set of locks in front of the Restricted Section. Hermione scowled, but was silent as she and her annoying companion crept past the front stacks and headed towards the creature sections. They had both met in front of the library promptly at ten the next night, hoping to have a relatively early start so they could scour the library as thoroughly as well, possible.

They both entered a large section of books, a sign floating above the section blazing the words _Dark Creatures Section_. Hermione glanced over her shoulder nervously - - the last thing she wanted was to have come this far only to be caught. Not only that, but she'd be caught with Malfoy, of all people.

"What would Potter and Weasley think?" Draco asked, as if reading her mind. He was lazily skimming the titles of books on one side of the section.

"I'd rather not think of that," she muttered, shaking the thought from her head. He turned to face his female companion. Her back was turned to him and crossed his arms. Leaning against one of the large cabinets, he observed her as she pulled a few books out to skim the first few pages.

Now Hermione was not beautiful, in fact she considered herself to be as far from so and never would be. But she was a girl, a teenage girl who was maturing, which was something Draco now had a moment to take notice of. He hair was still bushy, though no longer frizzy and almost uncontrollable at times, her face still bore that serious and studious face from first year and her personality was something that could never change. 

But she was growing up. That much was obvious. 

"Malfoy?" Hermione muttered as she scanned the first pages of a large periwinkle book, not looking even looking at him.

"What?"

"We're here to find a book, I'd appreciate it if you'd do so."

He raised an eyebrow at her and she smirked from above her book, before he turned around and began wandering through the various sections. They spent an hour or so going through the section until Hermione threw her hands up in exhaustion and slumped down at one of the study tables. 

"That was certainly productive," she muttered sarcastically. 

"Well at least we know it's not in the Restricted Section," Draco mumbled as he threw one of the books on top of another rather large and wobbly stack. Unfortunately, he didn't bother to take a moment to steady it and it came crashing down.

"Dammit!"

"Oh calm down," said Hermione as she stood up, made her way over to the books and began packing them up neatly. "Come on, help me pack these up before we leave. The last thing we need is Madame Pince knowing people have been breaking into the Restricted Section. Not if we ever need to do so again in the future."

Draco looked down wearily at the dusty and construed books, "Sorry Granger, but I refuse to lower myself to the level of a house elf."

Hermione snorted and held a large purple volume in front of her, a rather evil glint in her eye.

"Either help pack these up or I'll have another round of 'Whack the Ferret'!"

Draco narrowed his eyes at her, but nonetheless began shuffling the books back into an equally wobbly pile as the first. Hermione hid a small smile of triumph as she watched the young Slytherin in front of her attempt to avoid getting dust on his pale and petite hands. 

"Oh please, it's just dust," she muttered and he shot her an annoyed look. 

"At least the books my mother sent were clean."

Hermione couldn't argue with that, for the books that Narcissa had sent over were in immaculate condition. Shrugging, she absentmindedly glanced at the titles of the books, which were in front of her. 

__

Ancient Curses… Forgotten Creatures… The Age of Mages…

The young Gryffindor furrowed her brow at the first title. Pulling open the book, she flicked through the pages. Torture methods, transformations, and dark curses. The book seemed to have multiple purposes. 

"What have you got there?" Draco asked curiously as he peeked over her shoulder. His eyes lit up as her eyes turned the pages.

"It's just ancient curses and such… why? Do you think it could help?" 

"I'm not sure, let me see."

Hermione handed him the book and his face fixed in concentration on the words in front of him. He flipped past a few chapters and finally came upon one of the pages, which seemed to satisfy him and handed the book back to the girl in front of him. She glanced down at it in surprise.

__

The Maura Curse

__

One of the curses primary used during the reign of Grindlewald, The Maura Curse was issued upon documents, items and even wizards as a means to see whatever secrets they so possessed. In the case of a person, the curse takes one deep into the bowels of their mind; much like Occlumency and reveals to the wizard/s performing the enchantment, whatever they wish to see. 

In the case of an item, the curse is performed to reveal the situation in which it was first and last cursed. Now one may as, why is this a 'dark' curse? The answer is simple. It requires quite a bit of dark magic to perform it and it can be performed on anyone or any object that one is able to touch. 

It invades the person or item, stripping them of all the information that the curse performer wishes to receive; it is, also quite dangerous for someone to perform if they are not well trained with the spell. The after effects have been known to be horrific, bloody and can even make the performer mentally unstable. 

Hermione drew back from the book and Draco smirked. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together.

"You can't be serious!" she said, shaking her head.

"Granger, we've spent two weeks down in those filthy dungeons just so we can find the least bit of information and now that we have some sure fire way of-"

"Sure fire? You're talking about Dark Magic! It's not only forbidden but it's dangerous! Look! See!" she muttered as she held the book in front of Draco's face and pointed to a passage of words with her index finger. "The after effects have been known to be horrific, bloody and can even make the performer mentally unstable!"

Draco faked a yawn and folded his arms boredly, a stern look on his face. 

"Listen, this spell isn't nearly as perilous as it sounds. A lot of the books in the Restricted Section are C-grade dangerous and have to be approved by that oaf Fudge and his team before they even come here. This spell might be a little on the hazardous side, but I assure you that Cornish pixies will have had been a larger challenge." 

"And the fact that you're assuring me is supposed to make me feel any safer about it?" Hermione asked darkly. Draco rolled his eyes.

"Temper temper Granger, we're supposed to be _trying_ to get along here," he muttered. 

Hermione took a deep breath, her face flushed in slight embarrassment. They were _supposed_ to be trying and she had to admit, for the most part Malfoy had been downright decent; which was a very strange and uncomforting thing as at times, Hermione was worried he was just waiting to jump out from behind her and hex her. Of course, that feeling had disappeared after a few nights in the dungeons. 

Or perhaps it had just wavered slightly. Now Hermione was sitting right in front of a boy, who she had despised for five long years and who had made her life a living hell simply because of her parents. How could she _ever_ even attempt to trust him? Was he leading her into some kind of trap?

"I know that right now, you don't want to hear what I have to say and you don't want to do something that will in the least, get you expelled. But would you rather wait around here for my father to find some way to bind Luis, or for Luis to kill someone else before you decide that this mere spell could be worth something?"

Draco looked away from her, towards the piles of books, the stacks and shelves and the small light that was emitting from the fireplace in the unrestricted section of the library. Hermione sighed, and hugged her knees, her eyes darting to the book that sat in her lap and did the one thing she never expected to do.

She agreed with him.

"You're sure?" He questioned suspiciously. "You're not going to wait until I'm about to perform the charm and go running straight to Dumbledore, are you?"

If the situation had not been one of perpetual death, darkness and eternal worry then Hermione probably would have laughed. But instead she just nodded her head solemnly. 

"We need to re-bind Luis. If the spell helps, it helps. If it doesn't then there's nothing lost and nothing gained," and then she smiled, almost cunningly. "Besides, if it does backfire I'll just have more concrete evidence to hate you."

"Fair enough," Draco muttered, shrugging and looking down at his watch. "It's almost twelve now. Do you want to wait until tomorrow night or just get it over with?"

"Tonight. I don't want to waste another night simply because of sleep."

****

~*~*~*~

And so, ten minutes later, the young Slytherin and Gryffindor returned to their dungeon, the black volume in hand. Draco began going over the spell instructions in the book while Hermione listened diligently. They both had to memorise the spell, which was in French. 

Hermione was silently glad that she had visited France in her summer before third year. Even though it had been quite awhile since she had spoken the language, she breathed a sigh of relief that the language had stuck and she wouldn't be embarrassing herself any further in front of Malfoy.

"You have to have your full concentration on the journal at the time," he pointed out and Hermione nodded as she silently retrieved a small black book from her robes pocket. Luis' journal. She ran her fingers over the scarlet letters that spelt out his name and remembered the nights she would go to bed with his words running through her head.

"All right, that's everything I guess," Draco muttered as he closed _Ancient Curses_ and left it on his stool. A large desk now sat in the middle of the dungeon, which was where Hermione sat, the small journal in front of her. 

Her worries had not died down, but they did not surface entirely. She kept telling herself that Harry had done almost the same thing. He had entered Tom Riddle's journal and lived to tell the tale, not mentally scarred or beaten to a pulp.

"Right, are you certain about this Malfoy?" she asked once again that night. 

"It'll be fine. You might feel a bit queasy come tomorrow morning, but you should still be in one piece," he murmured as he flipped open the cover of Luis' journal. "Just follow the instructions like the book said and no matter what happens, concentrate. The things you might see may not be nice, but don't let yourself become overwhelmed by them."

"Why are you being so pleasant?" she suddenly asked and Draco stood, taken aback. She raised an eyebrow and tapped her foot against the stone floor impatiently. It was a rather a straightforward question, but apparently it was one that Master Malfoy had trouble answering.

"Because sometimes cooperation makes situations a lot more easier than having to fight with you over every little detail," he said plainly and Hermione blinked. They were both silent for a moment, the only noise in the room coming from the fireplace which sparked embers in front of them.

"So concentration is the key?" Hermione muttered, turning towards Luis journal, hoping to break the untimely silence. 

"Indeed."

With that, they turned their wands to the journal in front of them. Hermione took a deep breath, preparing herself to do something she never imagined herself doing as she heard Draco's voice begin chanting softly next to her.

__

Laissez l'obscurité me montrer, celui ce que je souhaite voir.

Laissez l'obscurité indiquer à moi, seulement ce qui est vrai.

Laissez l'obscurité me montrer, ce qu'il cache de moi.

Hermione closed her eyes until all she could hear was Draco's voice barely whispering as he stood but a step behind her. His breath grazed her cheek and she found it slightly distracting as she softly began chanting under her breath. 

'Concentrate,' she told herself as she held her wand towards the journal. 

__

Laissez l'obscurité me montrer, celui ce que je souhaite voir.

She felt Draco's shoulder brush hers as he leant forward, brandishing his wand at the unsuspecting journal. Hermione bit her lip, one last tremble of worry passing through her.

Laissez l'obscurité indiquer à moi, seulement ce qui est vrai.

'Am I doing the right thing?' her mind raged. 'Is helping the Malfoy's the right thing? All Luis wants is to be free!'

'_Yes,_' she answered herself back. _'But the cost of Luis' freedom is much too high a price to pay.'_

Laissez l'obscurité me montrer, ce qu'il cache de moi. 

And then suddenly Hermione felt herself being pulled forward, her body warmed by a bright light in front that surrounded herself and Draco. Suddenly, not knowing what she was doing really, she gripped tightly to Draco's wrist. She could hear his breath catch in his throat, but he continued to whisper the chant and Hermione's head began to spin. It ached and just when she thought she couldn't take it any more, it stopped.

"Open your eyes Hermione," came a quivering voice next to her. Reluctantly, Hermione opened her eyes slowly, glancing around herself. Draco was sitting next to her. Well, slouching was a more appropriate term. His face was pink and his breathing was rapid, like he had been running a long distance and had sat down to catch his breath.

"Where are we?" she said softly, glancing at the people in front of her. They were sitting in the middle of a large street, though it didn't look the faintest bit familiar. The few men and woman passing by didn't seem to even notice them sitting right there in front of them all. It was night and the stone ground beneath them was damp and stank slightly of horse dung.

"I'm guessing this is where the journal's chosen to take us," said Draco, his voice stronger than before as he stood up, dusting off his robes.

"Well that's obvious, _Draco,_" she retorted, a small cheeky glimmer in her eye. His flushed cheeks reddened slightly as realisation struck him, but he promptly turned around. 

"A slip of the tongue, I assure you it won't happen again," he muttered smartly. 

Hermione got up from the ground, the pounding in her head lessening as she looked around her. There was barely anyone in the street now. She gripped her wand tightly; a faint eerie feeling pass through her as the dimly lit street echoed the sound of faint footsteps.

"Someone's coming," Draco murmured. She shot him a worried look, but he merely directed her towards an empty alleyway to their right. "Obviously this place held some significance, but I doubt that if we're seen, things will be pleasant."

"When Harry entered Tom Riddle's diary, he said he couldn't interact with anyone at all. It was like he was just watching."

A confused look passed over Draco's face; "Potter entered Riddle's journal?"

Hermione nodded slowly, suddenly remembering that this was Malfoy was she talking to. It wasn't Ron or Harry who by her side now, but 'ferret boy' who seemed almost shocked by her small revelation. 

"I'm glad you came," a soft voice echoed into the alleyway. The two teenagers quickly turned and peered out across from the alley corner. Standing only ten feet away was a tall woman. Her raven-black hair and her demure demeanour made Hermione shudder slightly. 

"I've surprised myself by doing so."

Another soft voice echoed out from the shadows. Squinting into the darkness, Hermione realised that it was indeed Luis standing there. His apparel and dress were different from that when she had last seen him in her dreams, but she realised it was because of the time period. Most they were probably in the early 1800's. He had large black buckled boots on his feet; his body was covered in a tailor made vest, pants and a white, puffy shirt. 

Draco remained hushed, not daring to say a word in case he were to interrupt the meeting before him. 

"Well, why have you asked me here?" Luis questioned darkly as he stepped into the dim streetlight of one of the lit up torches.

"I see you're straight to the point."

"Speak Alexandra, for I do not have time for games."

Hermione curled her fingers around the corner of the brick wall. So this was Alexandra. Needless to say, she seemed to be everything Luis had mentioned in his journal. A tall, dark beauty … his beauty. 

"I've come to make peace with you," Alexandra spoke up. "I do wish for you to just forget your sire, not after everything we've been through together. And I do not merely wish to forget the young man I've entrusted so much time into."

Luis frowned slightly, his silver locks shimmering slightly as he bowed his head in mock appreciation. 

"It's been fifty years, why now?"

"Because I have waited long enough. At some point and time I lost you, but I do not want our past to have been in vain."

'Fifty years...' Hermione whispered, remembering their parting in the journal. Luis had walked away from her to start his own life. Yes, she remembered that. Draco shot her a quieting look, though it was obvious that he himself was slightly confused by her words.

"I shall not return to your side, you know this already."

Alexandra gave him a mock look of surprise and Luis scowled. 

"I knew you would not be swayed back to me my dark prince. But I have a peace offering, that is all."

"A peace offering?"

"Yes, something I hope may some day, allow you to forgive me for keeping you to myself. Something that may help you reflect and remember the years we had together."

And reaching into her long black robes, Alexandra withdrew a small black book. Draco squinted in front of him, before realising that it was the journal. The woman holding it held it out to the Malfoy in front of her. Luis pursed his lips as he examined the small gift in his hands. He ran his hand over the crimson words, which scrolled his name across the cover, noting the opened clasp. The Malfoy flipped it over opened and glanced curiously at the empty pages.

"What is this?" he asked lamely and Alexandra sneered. 

"A journal. One in which I can only hope will help you remember the past we once shared."

Luis glanced down at the book in his hands once more. 

"Is that all you wanted?" 

"If I were to answer yes, would you simply bid me good day and leave me standing here in the dark?" she asked softly, her red lips curling into a malevolent smirk. 

"I have my answer then," he muttered. "Good bye Alexandra."

Like a true gentleman, he tipped his head, before tucking the journal into one of his pockets and strode off into the shadows. Alexandra stood there, annoyed and surprised as her protégé simply walked away from her. 

"Damn you Luis," she hissed under her breath, tugging her cloak around herself tightly and wandering over to one of the buildings. "You shall get what you deserve, I assure you."

Meanwhile, the two teenagers were still standing in the alley, absorbing the new information presented to them. Hermione however didn't seem surprised to say the least. She had known that Luis was bitter towards Alexandra ever since he had abandoned her in London, but apparently his grudges could go on for quite some time. 

Well, his grudge with his family had lasted centuries. It was less startling when she thought of it that way.

"So now we know where Luis got the journal from."

Draco was resting against one of the walls, his face expressionless as he spoke, he was tapping his wand lightly against the wall behind him. Hermione didn't get a chance to reply, as once again she felt the world around her become warm and she scrunched her eyes shut as a bright light appeared once more, surrounding herself and Draco. The aura was comforting, but hurt slightly as she felt herself jolt, barrelling forward once more and the familiar pounding in her head returned. 

And just as quick as it had begun, the feeling evaporated and she opened her eyes once more. Draco was sprawled in front of her. He hoisted himself up off the ground quickly.

"We really need to some sort of warning for that kind of thing," he mumbled. 

Hermione nodded, "Well hopefully it'll all be over soon and we can get out of here."

She ran her fingers over a small cut on her hand before standing up, lighting her wand and taking in her surroundings. It would seem that this time, they were in a rather large forest. Tree's surfaced as far as her eyes could see and fallen leaves and twigs swam around her feet. All Hermione could do was predict it was night.

"I guess it's my turn to ask 'where the hell are we?'" Draco asked as he peered between tree to tree for any sign of light or life other than himself, Hermione and their wands. 

"Well, we're obviously here for a reason, let's find out," she answered as she began trudging through a mass of knee high leaves in a spontaneous direction.

"Hold it Granger, how do you know that if we leave here, we might just walk away and miss whatever is going to happen?" 

She pondered this for a second, glancing over her shoulder as if expecting for there to be a sudden change take place. The whole area seemed to be abandoned; they'd not even seen a bird or animal since they had arrived.

"Fine, if you've got a better idea, you may as well tell me."

Draco scowled as he held his wand out in front of him, 'scoping' the area around him and his companion. It did seem rather… well… dead. The wind wasn't blowing, the air was tight and musty and the deadly silence surrounding him wasn't comforting in the least. Hermione tapped her foot impatiently (or attempted to, as it was rather hard when you've got bounds of leaves covering them) before she heard soft voices in the distance. 

"Malfoy," she murmured, tugging lightly on his sleeve. He turned around to face her, his pale face illuminated by his wand. 

"What?"

"Listen."

There was silence once again. He gave her a questioningly look, before they both heard the voices. They were closer this time, yet undefinable. 

"Put out your wand," Draco instructed as he whispered the counter charm. They were now both cloaked in darkness, the silence once again enveloping them and Hermione felt her heart beating rapidly in her chest. 

What was going on? Who did the voices belong to? How long would they be standing there before something happened?

"Malfoy?" she whispered weakly.

"What Granger?"

"Where are you?" 

"I'm standing where I was the last time you could see me."

Hermione took a deep breath and as quietly as she could, amid the crackling leaves, edged her way to Draco's side. She could feel the heat radiating off of his body as she neared him and she thanked god that there was someone else out here with her, even if it was Malfoy.

"What're you doing?" he asked, clearly surprised.

"Shhh, they'll hear us," she muttered, slightly embarrassed by her own fear. Generally, Hermione wasn't afraid of the dark. But something about being in a completely different time, in a very unfamiliar place with a very uncertain future made her nervous.

The voices in the distance sounded once again, but this time they were close enough to be heard. Hermione spied the small flicker of torchlight out of the corner of her eye. 

"Where the fuck are we going?" one of them hissed. 

"It's Luis," Hermione whispered to Draco. 

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

"You wanted Cassius, did you not? Now I'm bringing you straight to him and you're acting so rude," An unfamiliar voice echoed next to him.

"Tell me, what's stopping me from ripping your throat out, Sarafina?" growled Luis.

"Because you've already done that," she retorted. 

Luis snorted, "I would have left you for dead if I'd have known you'd be leading me into a wild goose chase in the middle of Buckleberry Forest."

"He's not too far ahead, just be patient Luis."

The two figures neared Draco and Hermione, the torch Luis held bathed them in light, but he took no notice of them at all. He brushed past them both without even registering their presence and Sarafina did the same. 

"Odd…" Draco muttered as Luis and his companion walked a stone's throw away from them.

"I'm guessing they can't see or hear us," said Hermione as she took a step back from the boy next to her and began following the vampires that were walking in front of her. Draco eyed her warily, but it seemed that the young Gryffindor had been correct and he soon fell in line. 

"How did you manage to get Cassius to come out here?" questioned Luis.

"I told him I had news of you and didn't trust telling him in public. He suggested we meet at one of the Malfoy family crypt's, this is apparently the closest one."

Luis muttered something incoherent under his breath and Sarafina smirked. 

"Oddly enough, these two remind me slightly of you and Parkinson," chortled Hermione, silent amusement playing on her face. 

Draco shot her a dark look but she ignored it, preferring to try to listen in on the conversation of those in front of her. They continued through the forest, conversing back and forth between each other until they finally came across a large clearing; half of which was covered in a large, pewter building. Statues of snakes were placed at each corner and scrawled across the top in large cursive letters were the words, _The Most Sacred Memorial of Malfoys_.

"Where the fuck is he?" Luis spat, annoyance plastered across his face. 

"Patience is a virtue, my dark prince," a silky voice came from the woman next to him. He glanced at her, almost in shock before a large beam of sunlight shot through the woods, hitting him square in the chest.

"What on earth…" Hermione trailed off.

Out from the tree's stepped a tall, pale man. His pointed face and silver blonde hair were a familiarity as he removed his hood; still pointing his wand at the vampire that lay sprawled on the ground. 

"I'm going to take a wild stab in the dark and say he's a Malfoy," said Draco plainly. He observed the predicament with reserved reverence, clutching his wand tightly inside his robes. Even if they couldn't see them, it didn't mean they couldn't be hexed. Magic was a strange thing.

"And I'm going to do the same and say that that's Alexandra," exclaimed Hermione, pointing to Sarafina who was now being confronted by the wizard Malfoy.

"Here he is Cassius, as promised. I trust you shall live up to your part of the bargain?" Sarafina said sweetly, her dark blonde curls suddenly dripping away, leaving behind the familiar raven-haired beauty. Cassius' smirked and he ran one long finger along her lips.

"The journal, then you shall go and we are to never meet again."

Alexandra withdrew the journal from her robes, tossing it in his hands and turning towards Luis, who was struggling to his feet.

"I told you that you would regret leaving me Luis."

"You double crossing bitch!" he spat.

She pursed her lips and cupped his chin in her hand: "You brought this upon yourself. I tried to warn you, to make you see that your family's wrath can extend to even the dirty of the magical world. Perhaps you should have listened to me, but either way, consider this my final lesson for you."

And with that she turned her back to him, giving Cassius one last sneer before wandering into the forest and letting the darkness envelope herself.

"Lumos Olem!" Cassius cried, causing another beam of light to shoot from his wand at Luis. The vampire flew back; crashing into one of the snake-like statues which guarded the large Malfoy crypt. 

Hermione cringed at the look of pain on Luis' face. She turned away and faced Draco.

"We should go, I don't want to see this."

"If you don't want to watch, then go," he said plainly as he diligently watched _his_ ancestor torture his ancestor. Hermione hesitated, looking from one Malfoy, to another and to the other. Should she go? Could she? It wasn't like she could stop what was happening, and even if she could, would it be the right thing to do?

"This is just a memory Granger. We can't change what happens in it, but we can observe and learn from it."

Hermione nodded slowly, turning back to the two men in front of them.

"Where is Augustus' body?!" Cassius ordered. Luis laughed, which was a rather painful feat as many of his ribs were broken at the time.

"You're a smart chap, figure it out for yourself."

Another beam of sunlight. Another muffled scream.

"You'll regret this Luis, I swore it the night my father died and now with the help of your own sire, I shall make true on my promise!"

"And what are you going to do young Malfoy?" spat the battered and bruised vampire. "Kill me? Do so and you become nothing more than I! Oh how Theoden would have loved that!"

"Don't you dare speak my father's name!"

"I'll do as I please you lowly worm!"

"Expelliarmus!" 

Luis went flying into the crypt, a blood thirty look on Cassius' face as he stormed inside after him. 

"Are you coming?" Draco asked as he himself began following the man before him. 

Hermione shook and nodded her head at the same time. Eventually, she just followed behind him until they were both standing inside the large, dusty and barren mausoleum. 

Luis lay slumped against one of the walls, his face cut and bleeding, his chest and arms burnt. He was panting, gasping for breath – something he rarely did as he didn't need to breath. Cassius smirked broadly and pushed the lid of one of the stone caskets off. A loud thud filled the crypt as it hit the floor, but he ignored it as he discarded his wand and grabbed Luis by his hair. 

"This, Luis, is what I call your end. You've sealed your fate, welcome to hell."

And with that, with all his might, he carried the vampire over to the large stone coffin and slumped him inside. Luis could barely speak as he attempted to pull himself up. But his strength was slipping away, oh so slowly. Cassius let a hard punch against the vampire's cheek, making Luis fall back. 

Cassius retrieved his wand and used it to replace the lid on the coffin. He placed Luis' journal on top of the coffin, withdrew a book from his robes and began reading softly from it. Luis began banging softly from inside, his screams muffled by the large and heavy stone top placed above him. 

Hermione whimpered softly and Draco, suprising even himself, placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

"It's just a memory," he whispered and she nodded mournfully as Luis' screams grew louder. 

And then Cassius sealed the coffin with his wand; a dark green light forever closing it before it absorbed itself into the journal. The clasp of the journal, which had been open since the day Luis had received it, then closed. And all was silent. Luis' screams were gone and Cassius smirked, satisfied. He placed both books back into his robes and turned around, striding out of the mausoleum quickly. 

Speechless, Hermione wandered over to the coffin. She took a deep breath to steady herself and leant against the casket, swallowing the large lump that had formed in the base of her throat. 

"Is it over?" she whispered.

"It's over."

****

~*~*~*~

And the same, now familiar feeling jolted her forward. She closed her eyes once more and the next thing she knew when she opened them was she was back in the dungeons. Sitting up, Hermione glanced over at Draco, who was shaking the wooziness from his head. She ran a finger down the spine of the small black journal in front of her. It was still here, the same as she had left it.

"We're back," she said plainly and Draco nodded.

"That was certainly…"

"Suprising?"

"I was going to say exhilarating, but yes, suprising."

Hermione stood up, her legs regaining their strength as she slipped Luis' journal into her pocket and went to retrieve her bag. Silently, she cursed herself for her frightened behaviour in the crypt. How on earth could she have been so stupid as to let Malfoy see her when she was afraid? She could just imagine all the little taunts he could come up with. 

"Granger?"

She ignored him, throwing some of her notes back into her bag.

"Granger?" he repeated and she stopped.

"Yes?"

Draco got up from his chair and muffled a yawn as he held out her wand.

"You left this on the table," he murmured and Hermione looked up at in him surprise. She glanced back and forth between Draco and the wand.

"Thank-you," she managed to say as she slowly slipped the wand out of his fingers and placed it in her robes. They stood there, staring at each other awkwardly for a few minutes. Draco opened his mouth as if to speak, then closed it when nothing came out. He opted for returning some of the books strewn around the room back to their crates rather than speaking.

"Well, I can't really say we learnt anything from that spell at all Malfoy," said Hermione, silently wishing for the unusual atmosphere to disapparate. Suddenly, she heard a deep, sharp laugh come from across the room and to her utmost surprise, she found a large grin plastered across Draco's face. 

"Actually, I would say we learnt a whole lot from it," he muttered certainly as he threw the last two books into the crate. Hermione furrowed her brow.

"OK, if you're so smart, what is that we 'learnt'?"

"Well Granger, did you happen to notice the book Cassius was reading from?" he asked, raising an ever observant eyebrow.

Hermione almost kicked herself for being so ignorant. Of course! The book! It contained the spell that Cassius used. Now all they needed to do was find it.

"I was a bit… distracted."

To her surprise, Draco didn't smirk. Instead he just put out the fire in the fireplace without giving her another glance. 

"The book was called Da Firorenna Grimorum. I've seen it somewhere, I just can't remember where."

Hermione's heart skipped a beat. They knew how to bind Luis. It was almost all over. If anything, Lucius Malfoy should be able to bind Luis now on his own. Cassius had done so. Wouldn't he be able to?

"So what do we do now? I mean, you know the book. Will your father be able to take care of everything from here on in?" she asked hopefully. 

A curious look passed over Draco's face, "Are you really that desperate to get away from me Granger?"

Hermione blinked. This was certainly a rather different question she would have expected from Draco, especially since his tone and face had been so damned serious. And then Hermione realised it. Deep down inside, she was rather reluctant to let this Draco she knew just disappear and perhaps he knew that. 

"Do you want me to be honest?" she asked softly and he nodded.

"When this is all over, there may just be a seed of regret in me that won't let me forget and throw away the days I've spent with you here in the dungeon. Or, the memories I shall always have of what happened within Luis' journal."

Hermione hid her face, rather embarrassed once more that night. She bit her lip as Draco remained silent, merely standing ten feet away watching her with his ever-observant eyes. 

"Do you want me to be honest with you?" his soft voice coursed and she nodded slowly.

"Some part of me is still in that journal, worrying just how much Luis is destroying you from the inside out."

"You worry about me?" she asked suddenly, instantly wishing she could retract the words. His lips curled slightly as he lit his wand and walked the distance between them.

"I may be an evil, cynical bastard most of the time, but there are moments where I'm still human."

"And blatant," she added.

"Yes, blatant as well. But now, I think it's time that we retire for the night. It is almost four in the morning and I doubt many of the Professors would look upon it very kindly if we're not awake during lessons."

Hermione almost smiled as she slung her bag over her shoulder. Draco gave her the most smallest and lopsided of grins, before he turned back to the crates and began shifting them into a corner of the room -- their regular holding place. Heading for the door, she glanced once more over her shoulder at the young man across the room. 

"Draco?" she said, barely above a whisper. He turned around in surprise, giving her a questioning look. She shuffled her feet absentmindedly. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For not being the evil, blatant, cynical bastard when you could have been."

With that, he gave her one last weak smile, before turning back to the crates. Hermione stood there, contemplating his words, before she walked out the door, heading back towards Gryffindor Tower for some much deserved hours of sleep.

****

~ENDCHAPTER9~

Authors Note: OK, let me just say that I hated writing this chapter. Why? Because I've rewritten it and lost my muse more times than I could count. It was rather long, which was a bonus as much as a curse. I wanted to get it all into one large chapter, though I must say that Draco and Hermione's behaviour in this chapter will deeply affect upcoming chapters. It took me three days to get it to where it is now, so if you don't like it, BITE ME. 

Either way, FINALLY I'm getting somewhere with Draco and Hermione. So, we've seen a lot, learnt a lot. Happy people? Please review. I'll love you and I'll know that my time was not wasted. 


	10. Chapter Ten: Consequences Pt1

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. He belongs to JK Rowling, Warner Bros. and numerous other franchises. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

****

Dark Souls

By Bellatrix Black

__

Chapter Ten: Consequences Pt.1

"Careful with that Ron!" exclaimed Hermione. She was seated on a stool in Herbology class the day after her misadventure with Draco the night before. In her lap sat a set of instructions she was memorising for the day's lessons, while Harry and Ron attempted to trim the leaves of a rather fussy Worolo Plant. 

"I know what I'm doing!" Ron scoffed hotly, as he accidentally snipped off one of the branches. 

"Mr. Weasley! Put down the plant and step away from the sheers!" 

Professor Sprout was glaring at him angrily from across the green house, her hands on her hips and a clipped look on her face. Harry gave Ron a sympathetic look; whose face, in turn, turned the same colour as his hair. Hermione began tending to the poor mutilated and rather bald tree as her friend prepared himself for a long lecture on 'green house etiquette'. 

"Is something wrong with Ron?" she asked Harry absentmindedly, trimming the leaves slightly as she spoke.

"I think he's just a bit nervous, another Quidditch match is nearing and everything," said Harry as he compared his own Worolo Plant to Hermione's complete and neatly finished one.

"Well he did pretty well during the last one. What's happened?"

Harry shrugged as he readjusted his glasses, brandishing the sheers menacingly at a still ragged and rather brushy branch.

"We won the last one, but I think he's afraid that it was a fluke. He calls all his victories fluke's, even when he passes an exam."

"Oh, I see..." Hermione muttered, a pang of guilt striking her in the stomach.

"How about you come to Quidditch practice tomorrow afternoon? It might give him a confidence boost," said Harry, silently praying that Hermione accepted the offer. 

The past few weeks, she seemed to have distanced herself from not only he and Ron, but everyone else in Gryffindor. In fact, Ginny had gone so far as to say Hermione had shut everyone else out. Harry couldn't help but wonder if she had been right, and more importantly, if she was right, then why? Hermione had been acting strangely lately, but she had already said was because of her studies.

"Sure, of course I will," piped up Hermione, a small smile on her face and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He had been imagining it. He must have.

"Great! Tomorrow afternoon, four o'clock, Ginny will be there too, so you'll have something else to do other than stare up at us for a few hours."

Ron came trudging back to his friends, a rather sour look on his face as he muttered curses under his breath.

"I wonder what crawled up Sprout's arse-"

"Ron!"

"Oh forget it, let's just get this over with," he muttered. His eyes strayed over to the next twenty plants waiting to be trimmed. "And hopefully, we can burn them all in a satanic ritual when we're done."

Hermione rolled her eyes and Harry couldn't help but chuckle. Perhaps, things weren't as different as he had thought. The three continued on like this, with Ron's very open complaining which attracted quite a few annoyed stares from Professor Sprout and ten points from Gryffindor. 

"Dreadful! I swear she is!" Ron huffed as they all began packing up their sheers and gloves when the lesson finished.

"She's lovely as long as people listen to what she's saying," said Hermione with a dark look as she tucked her notes into her bag.

"Miss Granger, can I have a word with you?" Professor Sprout called from across the greenhouse. She was just congratulating Neville on his extra credit homework.

"Sure," came the reply. "Can you guys pack away my things? I don't want us to be late for Potions."

"No problem," Harry murmured as he tucked his own dragonhide gloves back into his bag. With a thankful smile, Hermione skipped over to the Professor. 

"Professor Sprout's probably going to congratulate her on having an A triple plus on her most recent homework," Ron retorted, rolling his eyes.

"Well if she does, Hermione would have deserved it, Ron."

"Yeah, I guess so," Ron sighed and as he shoved Hermione's notes into her bag. Hermione came wandering back to them, a small resilient grin on her face as she merely muttered something about 'wonderful work'. And the trio hurriedly made their way off to Potions.

~*~*~*~

"No! They have to be around here somewhere Harry!" 

Ron's shrill voice echoed through the Gryffindor common room that night. Furiously, he tore through his bag, throwing the contents around as he did so, causing Lavender and Parvati, who were sitting on one of the couches not too far away, to throw his quills right back at him. 

"Ooph! Stop it!" he hissed, batting his arms wildly in front of him to avoid the rather pointy feathers. 

The two girls merely glared at him, before glancing back and forth between each other and breaking out into a fit of giggles. They resolved to run up to the sixth years girls dorms for a gossip session, rather than explaining why, leaving Harry and Ron to wonder the mystery of the opposite sex and his missing Herbology notes.

"I had them when we were in the green house! I remember I had them in my hand and then I was putting Hermione's notes in her bag…" Ron scratched his head before realisation dawned on Harry.

"I may just be taking a stab in the dark here Ron, but do you think you might slipped them into Hermione's bag by accident?"

Ron flushed, embarrassed as he nodded slowly. "Well, it is a possibility."

With that, the two boys trudged up the steps to the girl's dorms and cautiously knocked on the sixth year's door softly.

"Hermione?" Ron asked and a barrage of giggles erupted from behind the door. The two boys heard soft footsteps heading towards the door, before it opened a crack and Lavender popped her head out. 

"Hermione's doing her prefect rounds right now, she should be back soon though," she said amid soft giggles.

"Oh, well did she take her school bag with her? Ron thinks he might have left some of his notes in there by accident," Harry asked hopefully. He didn't want to have to come back to this dorm once more that night, especially considering the sweet sugary look Lavender was giving him. 

"She left it!" Parvati piped up and Lavender stepped aside, letting both boys enter the room. Ron and Harry nervously edged passed her and made their way to Hermione's bed. Her belongings were neatly placed on her dressing table, next to her bed and slumped against one of the bedposts was her bag.

"Thanks," both boys murmured absentmindedly, as they opened it and tried sorting through the contents within. 

"God, she's got so many notes in here. You'd think she'd taken up more subjects again."

Ron resolved to emptying the bag all over Hermione's bed, amid protests from Harry who was rather worried about being in the girls dorms, let along going through Hermione's personal property. 

"Look at some of this stuff, there's a whole lot of papers on curses and stuff," Ron muttered as he flipped through the papers in front of him. Harry started pawing through the papers as well, hoping to get it over and done with before Hermione returned.

"Ron…"

"What?"

"Umm…"

"WHAT?"

"This ones on Malfoy!"

Ron's eyes widened as he snatched the paper from Harry's hands and began skimming a few lines.

Luis Malfoy's journal spoke of his many grudges, but after Draco and I explored it with the Maura curse, I realised the severity of such. It was rather trying and I believe Alexandra's influence on the situation only intensified his hate for his family. No doubt Luis' hate for his family hasn't died down. Draco's owled his father once more, though I don't know just what will happen _really…_

"What the hell?!" Ron screeched.

"Calm down, maybe there's probably a reasonable explanation for this," Harry insisted gently, cowering slightly from the look of fury on his best friend's face. 

"A reasonable explanation for what?" Sounded a voice from behind the two boys. Harry and Ron turned towards the doorway to find Hermione standing there, a large blue book in one hand and a rather interesting expression on her face. She glanced down towards her bed to see her notes strewn all over the place and her eyes narrowed uneasily at the paper in Ron's hands. 

Ron pursed his lips and flung the parchment at her and it only took one glance for Hermione to realise it was her notes on her experience inside the Maura Curse. She cleared her throat, but Ron managed to speak before her.

"What the hell is going on with you and Malfoy?"

Parvati and Lavender broke out in astonished giggles. "Hermione and Malfoy? Oh my god!"

"There is nothing going on with Malfoy and I," she barked at them, glaring at Ron now, "and this has nothing to do with you Ron, so just leave it!"

"Hermione, what's going on then? What are all these notes about?" asked Harry curiously, a rather dark look on his face. So, Hermione had been coming _something_ from him and apparently, that something concerning his very own arch-enemy. What kind of person would he be if he didn't get upset?

"They're not important and I'd appreciate it if you'd both stay away from my property," she muttered as she strode over to the bag and began hurriedly shoving them back into her bag. 

"Don't tell me it's not important Hermione, considering half these papers have Malfoy scribbled on them!" He almost shouted and Hermione cringed slightly. 

She felt her face become quite warm and she glared at the two boys. She hadn't done anything wrong here had she? It wasn't like she had been hanging out with Malfoy behind their backs – well she had, but only because the situation required her too. How else could she ever rid herself of the vampire who had been haunting her dreams? The man who had been meeting her night after night as she slept. 

And now, Harry was berating her for not telling him about something. It brought her right back to the summer before fifth year, where he had been so angry with her and Ron because they hadn't been able to tell him about most of the summer's events. Even then, he knew they had promised not to tell him and still he had persisted yelling at them.

"Oh shut up Harry!" she shouted, suprising even herself. "Don't you think I would have come to you if I thought you could help? Or do you really lack such faith in me and that you think I don't I know right from wrong!?"

"How is spending time with 'Draco' right, Hermione? How? Give me one good reason!" He barked loudly.

"It's none of your business, I don't have to explain every detail of my life to you Harry and I most certainly don't have to justify myself to you of all people!"

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means that if you can't accept the fact that I _can't_ tell you something, then I don't see why you bother asking for justification from me at all!"

Ron, Lavender and Parvati were all silent as Hermione and Harry glared back and forth between each other. Neither of the three was sure whether they should interrupt the argument between the two, though Ron had been surely tempted to when it had first started. Now, he was rather afraid of what would happen if he so dared to open his mouth.

Harry took a deep breath to steady himself, letting Hermione's words run through his head once more. A part of him wanted to yell and scream and to take the pieces of parchment and burn them to pieces. Malfoy and his family had played a part in Sirius' death. How could she even speak to Malfoy after that? But another part of him was telling him to be reasonable. He had already lost Sirius; the last thing he wanted now was to lose one of his best friends. 

"What do you mean that you _can't_ tell me?" He asked, slightly calmer now. Hermione swallowed the lump that had formed in the base of her throat.

"I can't explain it, Harry. If I could explain it reasonably, then I would. But right now, I don't understand it entirely either. I can promise you though, that I'm not doing anything bad or wrong and whatever I do, it's for the best. This is just something I need to take care of by myself."

"How does Malfoy play a part in it if you're 'doing it by yourself'?"

"He's helping me," she said plainly, biting her lip.

"How come you can tell Malfoy, of all people, but can't tell myself and Ron?"

"It's complicated Harry," Hermione said weakly and Harry shook his head, a look of disgust passing over his face and he turned to Ron, gesturing to the door.

"Let's go Ron, I think it's kind of obvious that we're not wanted here," he spat.

"I never said that!" she hissed but both boys were already half way to the door. 

"You don't have to say it Hermione! It's obvious enough! Don't tell me I'm the only one whose noticed it, but you've changed. You're always studying and if you're not, you're sleeping! What happened to the days when we used to talk? Or spent more than an hour together rather than holding up in our rooms or in the library?"

Harry shook his head, almost mournfully as he stormed out the door. Ron followed after and Harry slammed it behind him. Hermione jumped slightly, taken aback at the loud noise as she stared at the barren door. The room was silent and not even Lavender and Parvati seemed to have found anything to say.

Hermione turned to her bed, struggling to keep tears at bay as she packed the rest of her notes into her bag and placed it next to her bed. She bit her lip again, this time harder and she rummaged through her dresser for her night clothes as Parvati and Lavender wandered over to their own beds and began busying themselves with straightening out their quilts and covers. 

Hermione hurried out of the room and into the adjoining showers. She turned on the water, not caring that the water was barely but tepid as she stripped and stepped under the shower. The water cascaded down her body, and it was now, in the silent and lonely bathroom, that she cried. 

She let the tears mingle with the water from the showerhead and she barely tasted them as they ran down her face. She cried until her body racked with sobs and until she felt so exhausted that she could no longer stand before she turned off the tap, dried herself off and changed into her pyjamas. 

She returned back to her room and found that Parvati was sitting on Lavender's bed, chatting with her quietly. They both gave Hermione small, reassuring smiles as she hurried past and threw herself on her bed. She pulled the hangings around her bed closed and turned off her lamp. She closed her eyes, hoping that she was out of tears to cry, as she willed for sleep to woo her. 

~*~*~*~

"Hermione," his silky voice echoed and Hermione opened her eyes. Pulling apart the hangings from her bed slightly, she glanced around the room but found no one there. Was she awake? She wondered this, perhaps she was dreaming. 

"_Hermione, I'm waiting for you my dear._"

Hermione got up from her bed and pulled her robe off of a chair, wrapping it around her tightly as she felt a slight draft fill the room. She glanced over at the clock next to her bed; it was late, past four already. She slipped on her slippers, pocketed her wand and as quietly as she could, slipped out of the room. She made her way down into the common room, but to her surprise found no one there. 

"_I'm waiting for you in The Great Hall._"

She quietly padded out of the room and down the many winding corridors, her body still cold as her pyjamas and robe weren't made from the thickest of materials and the crisp autumn air did her no good. Winter was right around the corner; it was becoming colder by the day.

A few minutes of wandering the all too familiar corridors, skirting Filch twice and hearing that sweet and tantalising voice echo around her and Hermione soon found herself standing in the doorway to the Great Hall. She glanced around the hall nervously for the source of the voice, but found no one there. 

"Luis," she called softly as she squinted in the darkness. She pulled out and lit her wand as she wandered deeper into the large, solitary chamber. 

"I'm right here, Hermione."

The voice had come from the staff table and after a few steps forward; Hermione took in the sight of the tall vampire, sitting in Professor Dumbledore's seat at the head of the table. The young girl cautiously walked forward until he came into full view. His innocent, yet devilish face was illuminated in her wand light. His silver locks cascaded down to his shoulders and his grey, steely and still eyes merely watched her as he leant back in the plush seat. His body, thin and lanky was stretched out comfortably in the seat and his dark robes flaunted his face, which was angelic, yet cradled the misdeeds of the devil.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice just above a whisper. 

He smiled, gesturing to the seat next to him. "Sit, I'm sure you're tired."

Hermione watched him carefully, but nonetheless rounded the table and sat down in the seat, which was usually reserved for Professor McGonagall. Satisfied, Luis decided to answer her question.

"I am here my dear, because I know that all is not right for you."

Hermione blinked, wet her lips and swallowed the lump that had begun building up in her throat. "Everything is fine here. If anything, it was dangerous for you to come, you know that."

"You do realise, that you're a terrible liar?" he asked teasingly. Hermione inclined her head, tapping her fingers on the table nervously. Her ringlets of soft brown hair cascaded down neatly over her shoulders. Her thin frame only expressed the look of someone tired and overworked - yet the determined spark in her eyes beared the mark of a true Gryffindor. 

"I had this stupid argument with some friends of mine," she muttered embarrassedly. 

Luis nodded his head knowingly. "Mortal problems… the ones that stab at the heart and destroy the soul."

"Well when you put it that way…"

He chuckled softly, seemingly unaware of the fact that anyone could be lurking just outside the hall. Filch seemed to never sleep and the teachers were just as diligent in catching students out of bed. Hermione had no idea how she'd explain this situation if they were caught.

"Do not fear, no one shall stray upon us tonight," he said, as if reading her mind and Hermione wondered whether he could actually do so. If he could visit her when she slept, perhaps he was able to read her thoughts. 

"You shouldn't be here Luis, you know that it's not safe."

"I had to see you Hermione," he whispered and she felt slightly comforted. Well, at least there was somebody out there that wanted to see her. Ironically, it was the same someone she was trying to rid herself of. She felt another pang of guilt that night, for deep down she knew that she was betraying him.

"At the risk of capture? You should know better," she pointed out, a slight hint of thanks in her voice.

"Perhaps I should, but I have a proposition for you and I wanted to be here in person when I offered it."

"A proposition?"

"Yes," he whispered, a strand of silver blonde hair falling in front of his eyes. "You see, ever since you met me. Since you released me. I have been searching my mind for some way to thank you for doing so. I am a man of proper manners after all and I am deeply grateful towards you for releasing me."

Hermione nodded slowly. "You don't have to thank me for releasing you. I've told you before, it was quite accidental."

"Accidental or not, you were still the one. And for that, I am forever grateful. I almost came to believe that there was no way I could truly thank you for what you did for me, but then… then, I came to the realisation of the one thing I could give you that could ever truly …appreciate."

"And what would that be?" Hermione asked, furrowing her brow.

A small smile curled at the corner of Luis' lips and he turned himself to face her completely. He reached out and ran the pad of his thumb along her jaw. He felt her shudder and could hear her heartbeat quicken as he did so, which only delighted him further. 

"The gift I speak of, is immortality."

Hermione's eyes widened for a moment, before she stood up from her seat, horrified, and took a step back from him. Her voice caught in her throat and Luis watched with a raised eyebrow as she struggled to find the words to say.

"How," she began slowly, raising a hand in front of her. "How is immortality a gift?"

Luis still sat, his grey eyes observing her without the slightest hint of surprise. "An immortal does not need to worry about the trivial moments in a lifetime. They never have to worry about aging, about losing their body and their mind to old age. They never have to worry about disease and they never have to worry about time, for time is theirs to waste."

"And to make me immortal… you would turn me, wouldn't you?"

"Well how else would I make you one?" he asked softly, his expression unchanging. 

"Luis…" she began, but found that she didn't know what to say. '_Say no!_' her mind screamed. How could she even consider becoming what he is? To feed off of the living and to forever live in the shadows? She couldn't become that… could she? 

But what was the alternative? The life she currently led, where her best friends hated her simply because she had been acting oddly? Where she spent days upon days to establish herself, to get good grades so that when she graduated, she could do whatever she wanted in the wizarding world. And what use would that be when she was old and her mind wasted away into nothing?

'_Stop!_' she told herself. '_How can you even contemplate this?_' 

"I can see that you're torn Hermione and I understand. It is never easy for one to just choose between lives and I cannot expect you to do so within minutes. I never had the choice, though I'm sure you know all the details of my turning… Whatever you choose, just be certain."

Upon saying that, Luis stood up. He gave her one last, reassuring smile. 

"Before you choose though, just know this my darling. The one mortal life you could live could not possibly be as enlightening or as exciting as the thousands I could and would give you. I could show you things you could never imagine, but only if you let me."

"I don't know, Luis," she whispered as he ran a finger across her lips, which reminded Hermione of Cassius and Alexandra. The two… human and vampire… most people in that situation didn't live to see the next morning. 

"I know, so take your time. It's not like I'm going anywhere," he whispered in her ear and then, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

Hermione closed her eyes and bit her lip. Maybe he thought he wasn't, but if she and the other Malfoys got their way, he would once again return to the stone box he had been imprisoned in. How could she just stand there and not tell him what they were plotting? Because locking away this man was the right thing. He was killing people, he was feeding off others and as long as he was free, whomever he killed, their blood would be on her hands. 

She opened her eyes and found that Luis was no longer in front of her. Hermione glanced around the Great Hall, but found that it was empty and she couldn't help but wonder, just how long had she been standing there alone? She took a moment to calm herself and clear her head, before leaving the hall to its silence and heading back to bed.

~*~*~*~

Luis staggered outside of the castle, watching as Hermione, clearly shaken, headed back to Gryffindor Tower. He gripped hard onto the stone wall in front of him as he tried to control himself. It had taken him hours to walk from Abbotsville to Hogwarts, and even then he had had to wait until he was sure even that batty old Filch man was asleep. 

He could feel the thirst growing inside of him, calling for him to feed and quench itself and it took all his will power to not run inside after Hermione. It was late and he could feel dawn approaching. He knew he had to go back to Hogsmeade, that he had to take shelter in that boarded up old shack before sunlight claimed him. 

But the thirst was too strong and it yearned, it begged for him to end its struggle. He sniffed the air, the scent of man lingering slightly in the air. It wasn't Hermione's scent; he knew hers too well. No, this one was unfamiliar – and it was close by. 

Her pulled himself inside the castle, the hunger making his senses go wild as he neared his prey. He pulled himself closer to the scent until the person it belonged to loomed in front of him. The boy was still in his night clothes and he had his lit wand by his side as he wandered the corridors. 

Luis neared the boy, walking but a few steps behind him. But he was trained in the art of stealth. Years and years of experience had taught him how to guard his footsteps from mortal ears. And then, when the boy stopped, Luis could not control himself any longer and he grasped the boy's shoulders, spinning him around to face him. 

He slapped the boy's wand away and pushed him up against the wall. Fear swam in the eyes of the prey, which pushed Luis one step closer to the edge as he eyed his neck longingly. 

"It'll only hurt for a minute," he whispered and the boy whimpered pathetically as he took his last breath. 

~ENDCHAPTER10~

Authors Note: OK, I hope you've all enjoyed this chapter. So let's recap. Draco and Hermione are on friendly terms, Ron and Harry are pissed off at her, Luis has made his offer of immortality to her, but do you think she'll still think the same of it after finding out he's fed off of a Hogwarts student? And WHO was the student anyway?

Stay tuned, there's more to come! Please review me to let me know what you thought! As for the romance, do you expect me to just have Hermione and Draco fall into each others arms? (I've been tempted to make it happen so many times!). I'm trying to make this as realistic as possible, so I'm afraid and deeply sorry but I have to make it long winded and as awfully anticipating.

My livejournal features my general ramblings about Dark Souls and my D/Hr centered fic, Unforgiveable Sinner. Feel free to visit for updates and musings on future chapters!

And in closing, I'd like to thank Liz Rose, jules37, Dirty Angel, wildchartermage, ishtwan hakujani the third, Salem Cat, Dirty Angel and PriNcEsS-oF-D-c for their lovely reviews of the previous chapter! It's people like you guys that I write for! 


	11. Chapter Eleven: Consequences Pt2

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I claim to own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. He belongs to JK Rowling, Warner Bros. and numerous other franchises. No copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

**

Dark Souls  
By Bellatrix Black

**

Chapter Eleven: Consequences Pt.2

No one can prepare himself or herself for death, no matter what they think. The pain, the grief, of losing someone you knew or perhaps even loved, isn't something people are able to bear all of a sudden. Especially when you're alone. And especially, when it's your fault.

"Miss Granger?"

Hermione turned over in her sleep. 

"Miss Granger, I'd appreciate it if you'd wake up," the voice came again. Hermione stirred, before opening an eye a crack and looking at the woman standing over her. 

"Professor McGonagall? What're you doing here?" she asked, sitting up in her bed. The old woman looked tired and pale, which caused the sleep to leave Hermione's eyes quickly. 

"Miss Granger, there is not much time to explain. The other students will be awake soon, please, change into your school robes and meet Mr. Weasley and myself down in the common room."

Hermione nodded and the woman left her to change. The young girl quickly jumped out of bed, retrieved a handful of clothes from her dresser and threw them on as fast as she could before she grabbed her bag and headed downstairs. Professor McGonagall wasn't there yet and had no doubt, gone to wake up Ron.

That would take awhile, Hermione mused. Ron loved to sleep in late. Her heart sagged as she thought of the angered look Ron had had the previous night in her dormitory. God, how could she have let them walk away? She sighed and watched as Professor McGonagall soon appeared from the Boy's Dormitory.

"Mr. Weasley is on his way. He was rather reluctant to wake up," she muttered.

"Professor, what's going on? Something hasn't happened to Harry has it?" Hermione asked fearfully. Professor McGonagall shook her head. 

"No, Mr. Potter is still asleep in his bed. I'm afraid what's happened is something…" she trailed off, obviously still too deterred from whatever had happened to explain it to the student next to her. A few minutes later, Ron came trudging down the steps of the boy's dorm, a half asleep expression on his face. Her didn't so much as look at Hermione before turning to the Professor.

"So, what's with the early wake up call?" he yawned.

Professor McGonagall clasped her hands together, raised her chin and gave them both a very serious look.

"Both of you, as Gryffindor Prefects, must guard the portrait this morning. Professor Dumbledore has issued that no student is to leave his or her common room until further notice. I trust you two will adhere to this command as well?"

"Of course Professor," said Hermione. 

"What's happened? It's not something with You-Know-Who is it?" asked Ron in surprise.

"No, Mr Weasley. From what I know, it has nothing to do with You-Know-Who. But that's not the point. I want both of you to promise to not leave this room until Professor Dumbledore says you can, OK?" 

Ron hesitated, but eventually agreed. A relieved look passed over Professor McGonagall and she gave them both the smallest of smiles. "Thank you both, but now I must be off. Watch the portrait. No-one goes out, remember that."

And without waiting for another word from each of them, she turned and hurried out of the portrait hole, leaving both Hermione and Ron to each other and the empty common room. Ron went over and sat in front of the portrait hole. Hermione sat herself down on one of the long couches, unsure what to do or say really. 

The minutes ticked by and neither of them spoke. Ron checked his watch to find that it was only a little past half past six, Hermione began counting the burn stains in front of the fireplace. Eventually, Ron reached into his pocket and retrieved a deck of Exploding Snap.

"Do you want a game or not?" he asked lazily. Hermione nodded and sat down in front of him as he shuffled the deck. 

"You do realise why Harry's so upset, don't you?" Ron asked and she sighed.

"Yeah, I guess I do."

He stopped shuffling for a minute and looked her in the eye. "Why can't you just tell him then?"

"You mean why can't I just tell you both?" Hermione questioned, knowing it was Ron's own curious nature that was seeking out this information.

"Yes. Why can't you just tell us both?"

"Ron, you know that if I could tell you both, I would. But I can't. I don't know how you and Harry would react if I did…"

"It's not a girl thing is it?" he asked quickly, his ears turning a slight shade of pink. Hermione furrowed her brow, a small grin on her face. Of all things, how on earth had Ron jumped to that conclusion?

"God no Ron. And even if it were, it's not like I'd have Malfoy help me with a girl problem," she retorted as Ron began dealing out the cards. He merely shrugged.

"That's the bit that hurts him the most you know. The fact that you'd rather go to your worst enemy rather than your best friends when you have a problem…" said Ron wearily.

"Too true," Harry's voice echoed from the stairs. He was standing there, still in his pyjamas with a look of deep contempt at the two as they sat there playing cards. 

"Care to join in?" asked the red head, hoping that Harry wouldn't jump to conclusions on why he was down in the common room with the girl that Harry had broken out into an argument with the previous night. It wasn't like they were there on purpose; Professor McGonagall has issued for them to be there.

"Fine," Harry muttered, surprising both Ron and Hermione. Harry wandered down and sat cross-legged on the floor between his friends – well, one was a friend. The other was a backstabbing traitor (in his mind at least). Ron regathered the cards and began reshuffling them. 

"So, tell me Hermione. How long have you been friends with Malfoy? Before or after his mother told Voldemort the secrets Kreacher spilled to her?" Harry asked calmly.

Hermione shot him a dark look as Ron started dealing the cards out again, though he made no motion to stop the two – in fact he did seem eager for answers as well.

"One; I'm not friends with Malfoy. And two; Seeing as how I'm not friends with him, the time span shouldn't matter," she retorted as she threw down a king of hearts. Harry shook his head, throwing down a card after Ron. 

"Right, so the reason you wrote an essay concerning him was because you're just occasional enemies?" He muttered, waiting for his turn to come once more. Hermione could have slapped him for being such an arse. How could simple words make him turn against her so suddenly? 

"Listen to yourself, Harry. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you've taken a leaf out of his book and become a complete and utter biased arsehole," she muttered as she threw down her cards and stood up. She so wanted to return to her dorm, but instead she sat herself back down on one of the couches. She wasn't going to just abandon her post because Harry had a superiority complex.

"You're the one who's keeping secrets, Hermione," hissed Harry, as he and Ron continued the game of cards. 

"And its not like you've not kept secrets from us before, is it?" she barked at him as she straightened her robes and dusted off the couch. 

"When have I kept secrets? When?"

"Well for one thing, what about last year when Mr. Weasley was in the hospital? You didn't tell us you had embodied the snake in your dream!" 

Harry and Ron both stopped their game. The trio was silent, for it would seem that Hermione, possibly the smartest student at Hogwarts, was indeed correct. Ron swallowed, Harry sat with his mouth ajar and Hermione almost regretted saying those words. They all loved Mister Weasley and it had been quite a shock when the details of his attack had been revealed. 

"That was different," Harry coursed, breaking the odd silence. 

"How so? You don't even know what I'm keeping from you, so how can you say that it's different?" Hermione almost whispered. 

She realised now, that she was not in a very much different position than Harry had been at the time. He had not wanted to tell anyone about that part of his dream because he was afraid that blame would be associated with him and that perhaps, he might have even committed the horrific act the snake had done. Here, she had unintentionally released Luis and because of him, he'd killed a woman. If Hermione had never opened that book, then Madame Rosmerta would still be alive.

"For one thing, I wasn't fraternising with the enemy," Harry mumbled. "That's the difference Hermione. I wasn't in kahoots with Voldemort."

"And you wonder why I couldn't tell you. You obviously don't trust me now anyway, so what does it matter?"

"It matters because we worry about you Hermione," piped up Ron, glancing back and forth between both his friends. He had obviously had enough of playing the spectator. "And Harry, don't say you don't because I know you do. We worry about you and we don't want anything to happen to you and you know what, something will happen to you if you keep hanging around with Malfoy," 

"You don't get it Ron, Malfoy is the only one who knows how to get rid of him! He's my last chance!"

Harry glanced over at Hermione, a confused look on his face. "Get rid of who?"

Hermione clasped a hand over her mouth. Wonderful, she had basically let the cat out of the bag. Or the cats tail. But why couldn't she tell them? It's not like it mattered now anyway. Luis would be binded soon, but would she still have her friends left? Suddenly, the portrait slid open and in stepped Professor McGonagall. She glanced down curiously at the boys who were sitting at her feet. 

They promptly stood up and retreated to the couches, to give the Professor some room to move. 

"Well," she murmured. "It would seem that the situation is under control and Professor Dumbledore has agreed that students will be allowed out for breakfast."

Hermione and Ron nodded, whilst Harry looked back and forth between them and the Professor. "What situation Professor?"

Professor McGonagall gave them all a long, hard look, as if she were sizing them up. She sighed, obviously very tired and worn out, but she nodded. "I may as well tell you, though the Headmaster wished to address all the students together, I feel it might be best if you three were told together. It may help … with the shock. I trust you all to keep it to yourselves before the announcement." 

"I'm sorry Professor, but you've lost me. What's happened?" Ron asked anxiously. He had been secretly contemplating all the little scenarios ever since he had been awoken, a lot of which had concerned You-Know-Who but apparently he had been wrong about it.

"Well," Minerva hesitated. "Early this morning, Nearly Headless Nick found the body of a Hogwarts student outside the Charms classroom. Needless to say… the body was not alive."

Hermione's heart stopped for a minute and she gasped loudly. She sat there, staring at the woman in front of her as she watched for their reactions. Ron was speechless, his face downcast and pale whilst Harry held his own head in his hands.

"It was Voldemort, wasn't it?" he asked softly. Minerva choked slightly at the Dark Lord's name, but shook her head.

"No, Mr Potter. It would seem our presumption that the vampire attack in Hogsmeade was not a mere one time incident. The student had two small puncture marks on his neck and the Madame Pomfrey has confirmed that it was a lack of blood that killed Mr. Macmillan."

"Ernie?" Ron almost shouted. "It-it killed Ernie?"

"Hush Mr. Weasley," McGonagall ordered, casting a nervous glance in the direction of the dormitories. "And yes, I am sorry. I am just as deeply saddened as you are. Mr Macmillian was indeed a fine student and a decent child."

It didn't take much looking to see that the Professor was attempting to keep her own tears at bay. Harry sat there, his head still in his hands whilst Ron gripped the couch tightly, trying desperately to digest the latest news. Hermione however was not as fortunate as the others were. She kept her head bowed, feeling a warm tear trace itself down her face.

"Dear god Luis," she whispered under her breath. She looked up to face the Professor, sniffing and blinking away any signs of the deepened guilt and remorse she felt.

"Are you sure that it was a vampire bite that killed him?" she asked lightly. Professor McGonagall nodded a curious expression on her face.

"Why Miss Granger?"

Hermione shook her head nervously. "No real reason."

Now unfortunately, as well as being a bad liar, Hermione was just as bad an actress. And as she attempted keep her demeanour calm and deny that she knew anything, Professor McGonagall realised that there was indeed something that was being unsaid and decided to take charge of the situation.

"Mr. Potter, I'd advise you to get changed and prepare yourself for breakfast. Lessons have been cancelled, so you needn't worry about preparing your school bag. Mr. Weasley, perhaps you'd better go with him, I'm sure there are things you wish to discuss, just remember that I don't want this news spilling to other students before Professor Dumbledore can address them."

Ron and Harry nodded silently, standing up and giving both Professor McGonagall and yes, even Hermione, looks of silent reassurance as they headed back to the boys dorm.

"Miss Granger, I think it would be wise if you came with me," Minerva said clearly. Hermione stood up slowly, cleared her throat and exited the portrait hole behind her Professor. They fell into step and Hermione nervously glanced around her before she realised where they were going. A few minutes later, they arrived outside a large stone gargoyle, which she knew guarded Professor Dumbledore's office.

"Sugar Quill," the Headmistress said and it jumped aside to reveal a large staircase. She instructed Hermione to wait there, while she herself mounted the steps. Hermione sank down to the floor, leaning against a nearby wall as she waited. _'Dammit Luis!'_ her mind hissed. How could he do this? How could he kill someone here, of all places? She placed his face in her hands and had to use all of her self-control to keep from sobbing.

Luis had been here because of her. If he had never come to the school, then Ernie would still be alive. How could this happen? More importantly, how could she _let_ this happen? She should have known that Luis wouldn't just leave. No, he was a vampire. He wasn't a human being. He was… he was evil.

"Miss Granger?" Minerva's voice came from the staircase. Hermione slowly looked up and the headmistress gestured to the staircase. "The headmaster will see you now."

Reluctantly, the young Gryffindor stood up and trampled up the large stone steps until she found herself at the ajar door to Dumbledore's office. She heard the Headmaster beckon her in and she promptly walked and sat herself down in one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"You're probably wondering why Professor McGonagall has called you to my office?" 

Hermione nodded slowly. The old headmaster, with his silver beard and hair smiled down at her from behind his desk. His hands were placed neatly in front of him as he observed her through his small round spectacles. 

"It would seem, Miss Granger, that she feels you may know something about the events concerning Mr. Macmillian's death," his calm voice said, his eyes held not the slightest glimmer of suspicion and Hermione gulped, clasping her hands together nervously.

Should she tell him? Should she tell the most powerful wizard she had ever known and befriended? Surely he would understand that it wasn't her fault, that she never meant to release Luis and most certainly never meant for Ernie, Madame Rosmerta and goodness knows who else to die. She shuddered, glancing up at those crystal blue eyes of her headmaster and she decided that she'd had enough of this secret burden. 

"I know something… concerning the nights events."

Professor Dumbledore raised his eyebrows, leant forward in his seat and placed his chin on his stippled fingers. "And what is it that you know?"

Shaking slightly, Hermione struggled to find her voice as she wondered just how much to reveal. 

"I know who killed Ernie…" she whispered. 

"And who is it Miss. Granger?"

"Someone who I cannot reveal, I don't have the right to reveal it and I made a promise that I do not wish to break."

Professor Dumbledore did the very uncanny thing of stroking his beard, before removing his spectacles and cleaning them with a small piece of cloth. He silently contemplated whether to push any further for information from this almost distraught girl. 

No wonder she seemed so close to tears. The death of anyone, including a student she had known and studied with was obviously a very trying situation. He knew that she was not lying, for Legilimency proved handy in situations such as these and his instincts told him that Hermione was not doing anything wrong per-say, yet she was feeling guilty over what had happened.

"Can you assure me that you are not doing anything wrong or bad that will not end up harming any more students here at Hogwarts? And that you were not behind this attack at the school?"

Luis would be binded soon, she told herself. He would be binded and this would all be over. Life would return to normal. Life at Hogwarts would go back to way it was. The only difference was that Ernie would not be around to see it…

"I promise you Professor, I had nothing to do with the attacks. It's not like I have vampires around who suffice to my every whim. I liked Ernie and he was a friend, I swear I didn't do anything-"

"I'm not blaming you Miss. Granger, on the contrary, I believe that you were not directly linked to Mr. Macmillian's death. But whatever does happen, please, if it becomes any more dangerous I want you to come directly to me. My door is always open."

"Yes Professor."

And with that, he dismissed her, telling her to head down to breakfast and have something to eat. She breathed a sigh of relief as she padded down the last step of the spiral staircase and headed towards the Great Hall. This wasn't right, today had been so wrong… How could he do this? How could Luis do this? She considered not going to breakfast and just crawling back to her bed, throwing the covers over her head and letting the world pass her by as she wallowed in self pity. 

But she was a prefect and she watched as she saw a Ravenclaw prefect leading some of their students to Breakfast. Of course, Professor Dumbledore wouldn't want anyone to miss the news, he wanted to keep them calm and reassured and hearing it in some everyday gossip would not suffice. So grudgingly, she headed back to Gryffindor Tower. 

Ron was already trying to handle the few Gryffindors who were annoyed that they had to wait for the others to arrive before they could fill their stomachs. 

"Where'd you go?" he asked as she stepped in from the portrait hole.

"Professor McGonagall needed help with something," lied Hermione.

~*~*~*~

The announcement hit Hogwarts pretty hard. As all the students sat at their respective tables and Professor Dumbledore revealed the details of Hogwart's loss; Hermione couldn't help but feel guilty as she silently mourned with the rest of the Gryffindors. 

Many of the Hufflepuffs and even some Ravenclaws broke out into tears, while others seemed more afraid for their own safety. Dumbledore, however, merely assured them that it was unlikely the vampire would still lurk around Hogwarts and many of the teachers had checked the passages and classrooms as dawn had broken.

Classes had been cancelled for the rest of the week, though no one seemed to be in a celebrating mood. Harry and Ron merely store down at their empty plates. Many students had finished eating already and those who hadn't had suddenly lost their appetite. So with solemn, down turned faces, the students began piling out of the Great Hall.

Hermione stayed in her seat though, unmoving as even the teachers left the high table and headed off to the Staff Room for another top secret meeting. Finally, only a handful of students were left in the Great Hall. One of which was Draco, who was observing her from the Slytherin table. 

He inclined his head towards the exit and she nodded, walking out and waiting for him. A minute later, he arrived and without a word, took her hand and hurriedly guided her along through the corridors until they arrived in the Dungeons. He glanced over his shoulder on occasion, but kept going until he and his companion were both inside their dusty old storage room. Closing the door behind him and locking it, he turned to face Hermione.

"Terry Boot of Ravenclaw saw you exiting Professor Dumbledore's office this morning," he said plainly. Hermione blinked in surprise, but nodded.

"Professor McGonagall took me to see him, apparently she had the feeling that I knew something."

"I'm guessing, from the fact that Dumbledore hasn't questioned me, that you didn't decide to leak our little secret," he asked as he sat down in front of the barren fireplace, lighting it to give the dark room some illumination. The only fault about being in the dungeons: There was no sunlight. 

"I told him that it wasn't my business to tell, he accepted it at that," she said, sitting down on her reserved stool and observing Draco cautiously. It was always hard to tell what kind of mood the young Slytherin was in, for he seemed to have mastered the ability to keep them hidden until the very last minute. Then of course, he'd just explode. 

"Thank you," said Draco softly, leaning forward in his seat as he spoke. 

Hermione was shocked once more that day. Never had she heard Draco Malfoy, the selfish Slytherin prat, thank anyone. But then again, this wasn't Draco Malfoy, the selfish Slytherin prat. This was Draco, the same boy who had stood by her as they watched Cassius torture Luis. The same boy who had reassured her that the memories in the journal were just memories whenever she had felt so close to tears.

"For what?" she asked, confused.

"For not breaking your promise. For not telling Dumbledore when an able opportunity presented itself," he said calmly, looking over at her with an expressionless face.

"Well your welcome, I guess…"

Draco stood up and began pacing around in front of the fireplace. 

"Don't be so surprised Granger, it's not like I'm not capable of than-"

"Hermione," she said plainly, causing Draco to stop and furrow his brow. "My name is Hermione. And I'd appreciate it if we got off of the last name basis; we're past childish grudges at the moment… _Draco_."

"Fine, OK _Hermione_," he muttered as he resumed his pacing. "But you do realise why I've brought you here don't you?"

"No, and I'm guessing your thanks wasn't worth the chance of a public rendezvous. So please, feel free to enlighten me."

Draco ran a hand through his silver-blonde hair, which was rather scruffy as he had been abruptly awoken earlier in the morning by Professor Snape and hadn't had enough time to fix it. He sighed, his footsteps on the stone floor echoed through the room and he turned back to face his companion.

"I think it's rather obvious now, that Hogwarts is no longer safe for either of us."

~ENDCHAPTER11~

Author's Note: I am so deeply sorry for all fans of Ernie MacMillian. I just couldn't resist killing him off. It was a choice between him, Justin or Terry and I've disliked Ernie for a rather long time. I didn't want to kill off anyone from Gryffindor or Slytherin and no one else in any of the houses seemed to be known enough to make a realistic impact on the school.

I'd like to thank my lovely reviewers, especially those who mentioned Dark Souls over at LJ as it reminded me to post up the next chappie. *waves*  


So yes, another Hufflepuff bit the dust. Sorry people, but it was a rough choice. Anyway, please review and let me know what you loved, hated and who you wanted to die, just for my own amusement. 

In the next chapter: A snog! Finally! Plus, we get to visit a suspicious Snape, I finally unleash Ginny and angst galore! Hoorah for angst! 


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